Just a little girl
by Cithara
Summary: “People look at me and they see this girl what could she possibly know about the world? What does she know of fear, of disgust of all the rottenness and evil that consumes the dark part of this world? What does she know of anything Please r&r! ON HIATUS
1. Default Chapter

Just a little girl Chapter 1 

Okay, I've been off fanfic for AGES so if any of you remember my fic "The One", this is a revised version of it, same kind of plot but changed drastically! So just forget "The One", if you haven't already! Anyway, I hope you like this one and I'd really appreciate it if you'd review with any of your comments, but constructive criticism if much more welcome than straight out flames! Thank you, on with the story….

Ginny sat in the Great Hall digging her fork into her barely touched breakfast. She was fully aware of the dark circles underneath her eyes and the pale, sallow look of her skin, but the feeling of sheer of exhaustion was too great for her to care much. The dreams had been haunting her again. She had been beginning to think that maybe, just maybe, they were finally leaving her, how wrong she had been. Almost every night now she woke with a start, her breathing quick and shallow and an iron grip of terror around her heart. Memories were a powerful and sometimes potent thing, and she wished she could eradicate hers.

But no matter what she was going through, she wouldn't show it, she refused to. All her life she'd been protected, overly so in her opinion, and she was determined to show everyone she wasn't just a little girl. So she held her head high, carried on, and met any challenge or unwelcome comment with a tongue sharp enough to cut diamonds. It wasn't all a front, she was beginning to adopt it as part of her, but every now and then, when no one could see, she slipped back to being just Ginny, a girl just trying to get through.

Sighing, she pushed her plate aside and making her excuses to those sitting next to her, she left the Great Hall, hoping to find somewhere a little quieter. Pushing her hair out of her eyes, she carried on walking until she found a secluded window set away from one of the staircases. Leaning on one of the ledges she let the breeze wash over her, trying to let it sweep away the nightmares.

"Careful, wouldn't want to fall out now would we?" came a slow drawl from behind her.

Rolling her eyes and slowly turning round, she saw Draco Malfoy standing halfway down the staircase, his arm resting on the banister and his head tilted, looking at her. Cursing under her breath for the disruption, much less whom it was caused by, she adopted a sickly "sweet" smile and rested a hand on her hip.

"Malfoy," she said as he began to descend the staircase. "Please feel free to just carry on walking, I wouldn't want to keep you for the oh so important business I'm sure you must have."

"You don't want me to stick around? I'm hurt, deeply." He said, now standing in front of her, a good six inches taller than she was.

"Well," she said, taking a step towards him, biting her lip. "To tell the truth, I was kind of hoping that maybe you could hang around for a while, I'm a little bored and I thought we could…entertain ourselves." She said softly, cocking her head to one side. **(AN: by the way, I was VERY reluctant about using the word 'cocking'!)**

"You wish Weasley."

"Actually, I think you'll find you do. Now if you'll excuse me I think there might be a better life form I can talk to, like a worm." She pushed passed him, a small smile playing on her lips. "Round one to me."

"Damn Weasleys."

Ginny lay in bed, her eyes staring into the darkness. She wasn't bothering to close them, that only brought the nightmares earlier and prolonged the amount of time she had to endure them. She sat up and ran a hand through her hair, her eyes beginning to feel heavy.

She didn't want to close them, she couldn't bear to see his face again, looking down on her, his eyes boring into hers, possessing her mind and gaining control over her. She could hear his voice in her head, whispering things, secrets, lies, commands and all of it so calm, even soothing at times. Then it changed, it became painful, the promise of pleasure and new experiences were obliterated. Terrible thoughts and evil actions came into her mind, and all the time she saw those eyes, never blinking and always on her.

She was abruptly shaken from her less than pleasant thoughts by the sound of glass smashing. Flinging her curtains open she saw that the window directly opposite from her bed had been shattered and at the foot of her bed she saw the reason why.

"Gin? Are you alright? What's going on?" came the voice of her friend Faith from the bed next to Ginny's.

"Yeah I'm fine, stay there." She replied, sliding out of bed and heading towards the object that had obviously been hurled through the window. It was just a rock, but it was what was attached to it that interested Ginny. She removed the piece of paper and unfolded it. She froze when she saw the words:

You were mine once before, you will be again 

"No." she breathed, feeling her blood run cold. "No."

Cithara: Well that's your lot for now, hopefully I'll be updating soon.

Draco: Well if you could hurry it up, I'd like to get to the naughty parts.

Ginny: Honey, you won't be getting near anyone's naughty parts!

Draco: That's what you think!  
Cithara: Bloody hell, you're just a nymphomaniac aren't you?

Draco: And what's wrong with that?

Ginny: Get your hands off me! Slaps him hard and storms off

Cithara; Why do I chose to keep putting myself through this? I need a holiday. Anyway, please review, it would make me extremely happy! ;-)


	2. 2 You have got to be kidding

Chapter 2 

**Thank you very much to riah riddle for reviewing, although I'm very sad to only have one review , still can't ask for the moon just yet. Hopefully I'll be posting rather regularly, but with school and life in general, you never know! Please r&r, I would be very grateful! On with the story….. (I promise this does get better!)**

"How are you feeling now Miss Weasley?" asked Dumbledore, handing her the tea she had asked for.

"Better thank you. I'm sorry for waking you, I just…..I just didn't know what to do."

"Perfectly alright, and entirely understandable under the circumstances." He said gently, his eyes going over the note another time. She had been sitting in his office for nearly half an hour, having gone straight to him when she recovered her senses. He had disappeared twice during that time and she could only hope he was trying to make sense of whatever was happening. She was scared, frightened that the safe haven of Hogwarts had been breached.

The note was undeniably that of Voldemort's. Obviously it hadn't been 'delivered' by him, but there was absolutely no doubt he was behind it, and that thought scared her half to death. Her nightmares were slowly becoming reality and she wasn't sure if she was ready to deal with that.

"Now, it seems to me that you are not safe on your own. While Hogwarts obviously is protected in many ways, it is impossible to protect and guard one student at all times indefinitely. Therefore, I have arranged for someone to keep you safe, a guardian if you will. This person is in fact a student, which may seem strange, but I have every reason to believe you will be safe in his care."

Ginny sat processing this information, wondering how on earth someone of her own age was going to keep her safe from Voldemort. It had to be Harry; Dumbledore wouldn't trust anyone else with something like this.

"What have you got yourself into now?"

She looked up and saw Draco standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame, arms crossed, and the smuggest of expressions upon his face. Disbelief made its way onto hers and she turned to look at Dumbledore with a look that said "You have got to be joking!".

"Mr Malfoy, please take a seat. Now Miss Weasley, try not to look so very shocked, I believe this is the best course of action. But I can see explanations are in order." Ginny nodded mutely which Dumbledore took for his cue to continue. "Mr Malfoy does in fact work for the Order, at least, he will do when he leaves here, as for now, he is employed in the service of something of a double agent." On seeing Draco's expression at this reference to him, he apologised but continued regardless. "He has been made aware of the situation and, after some deliberation, has agreed to undertake the task."

"How very big of him." Said Ginny quietly, though her surprise was somewhat more than a little. Hadn't Draco been down for the future Death Eaters of Britain since birth? Why on earth was he working for Dumbledore, and why on earth was he the one who was going to protect her? She'd feel safer with Voldemort himself!

"Now, there are still a couple of hours before you have be up, I suggest you both go and get some sleep." He nodded them goodnight and they made their way down the staircase and along the corridor in silence, Ginny's jaw clenched tightly. What was the point in going back to bed? There was no way she'd sleep now.

"Meet me tomorrow morning outside the Great Hall, I'm supposed to show you your new room."

"Wait, my new what?" she asked, turning round to face him.

"New room. Yours obviously isn't safe and someone knows you're there. It's best if you're moved to an unknown place, somewhere I can keep an eye on you."

"If you're about to suggest I move to the Slytherin dorms you can forget it."

"Unclench, just meet me tomorrow morning outside the Great Hall and you'll find out." With that he swept away without a second glance.

Ginny sighed and shook her head, making her way back to her own dorm. The glass had now been repaired and it looked as though the other girls were well asleep. She sat down on her own bed, her eyes going to the spot where the rock had been. She was so sure she was rid of him, it had been six years and she'd been free of him. Apparently not. She didn't know what to do, how to cope, nightmares were one thing, but this, this was another entirely.

Now there was this guardian business. Draco bloody Malfoy of all people! She'd always suspected Dumbledore was a touch senile, now she was convinced of it. Her life was in danger and she had just been told she would be spending a large portion of it with her brother's 'arch nemesis' and a person she wasn't exactly crazy about either. She had so many questions, so many thoughts were playing on her mind, but then, that was hardly new.

Ginny hadn't managed to sleep, she had known she wasn't going to. At around five o' clock she threw the covers off, dressed quickly and headed for the lake. She didn't want to have to face everyone when they woke up. No doubt there would be questions, and she had plenty of her own without dealing with anyone else's.

She stayed until eight, sitting at the base of the tree, watching the morning spread out before her. Why did things never go smoothly? No matter what you did, life always had a way of coming back to kick you in the arse. Remembering she was supposed to meet her 'guardian' she pushed herself up and dusted herself off, heading for the Great Hall.

"About time." He said on seeing her. "You look like death."

"Morning to you too." She said, rolling her eyes. "Well, let's get this over with."

Smirking again at her dishevelled and unseemly appearance, he moved in front of her and began walking. On coming to an old, rusty door that looked as if it long since stopped receiving any TLC, Draco removed a key from his pocket and let them in. Behind the door was a winding staircase which they then climbed and at the top was yet another door.

"Well I'm just filled with childlike anticipation now."

"I thought you would be. Welcome to you're new room." He said, pushing the door open.

Ginny stepped in, her eyes taking in every detail. To all extensive purposes it wasn't too bad, there were the obvious things a room required as well as a large fireplace and a little sitting area in front of a small diamond shaped window. Off to one side was another door.

"Where does that go?"

"Bathroom then my room."

"Just a second there! You are not seriously telling me that you're going to be up here too?"

"That's the general idea Weasley." He replied, taking a seat.

"And that's supposed to make me feel better is it? You sleeping in the room next to me!"

"Don't worry, I'm not considering coming in and ravishing you in the middle of the night." He said, the trademark smirk appearing once more. Ginny was quite ready to offer to remove it for him.

"Like you'd have the chance, I'd have ripped your jugular out before you even stepped in the room." The look on Draco's face was one of amusement and sheer scepticism. "Look, just stay away from me and we'll both be better for it.

"I don't really see how I'm supposed to protect you if I stay away from you."

"I don't see how you're going to protect me anyway!"

"Gratitude is obviously not one of your better qualities. I have to go and speak to Snape, can I trust you here on your own?"

Seeing he wasn't going to get an answer he threw her the key and left her to whatever mood she was in now. He made his way down the stairs, passed the Great Hall, through the corridors and down the stairs that led to the Potions dungeons. Not bothering to knock he pushed the door open and settled himself to wait for the arrival of the Potions Master.

A fine situation to be in. It had taken Snape a good long session of sheer lecturing to convince him to do this, and he still wasn't sure it had been the right decision. A Weasley of all people! How important could she be to Voldemort? She was just a girl, a very annoying, opinionated, self-righteous one at that.

It had been a year since Draco had 'switched sides' as it were. He rarely thought about the reasons and circumstances these days, it was just another thing to block out. But they had been enough to change his mind forever, enough to send him one night in a state of panic to Hogwarts and Dumbledore. He never looked back. Hogwarts had been his retreat, for the rest of the summer he locked himself away, speaking not a word to anyone, re-evaluating everything he had ever known or believed in. After spending weeks on his own, barely even existing, he had gone first to Snape, then to Dumbledore and had agreed to join the 'forces of goodness' though he made crystal clear that nobody was to know, it would be better that way.

"Draco, sorry I'm late, I was talking to Albus. Is everything alright?"

"As well as it can be considering I'm effectively 'bunking' with a Weasley. She's not the easiest of people."

"Neither are you."

"At least I'm not a Weasley. I don't see why I had to be lumbered with this task, why couldn't Potter do it? He's the school hero after all and Weasley's idol."

"It was thought that you were much better suited for the job." Draco's only response was to roll his eyes. "It is as of yet uncertain what Voldemort's purpose is in pursuing Miss Weasley, but she is to be kept safe at all times and if that means being with her all hours of the day then I'm afraid that's exactly what you'll have to do."

Ginny sat in the armchair by the window, her legs tucked underneath her. It was pitch black outside, but she still continued to stare. She was replaying the argument she had earlier had with Draco regarding her attendance to lessons. He'd told her to stay in the room and work would be sent up. She'd refused point blank. It was bad enough that everyone knew she'd been moved form her dorm to some secret room somewhere, but if she suddenly disappeared from lessons also, it would only cause more tongues to wag.

"Stopped sulking yet?" Draco asked, emerging from the bathroom.

"I wasn't sulking in the first place for your information."

"Merlin knows why, but people are trying to protect you, you could at least go along with their plans for that protection." He said, sitting across from her.

"It would have looked odd. Are we really going to go through this again? I haven't the energy."

"So I see, you still look like death."

"You know what? This would be a lot easier for me if you'd just shut the hell up and keep your witty comments to yourself."

With that she opened the book on her lap and buried her head in it, trying desperately to pretend he wasn't there. Some hope. He began clicking his tongue and tapping the side of his leg in a deliberate attempt to annoy her. It was working. The cracking of his knuckles came next, then the tapping of his fingers against the arm of the chair.

"I'm going to get a shower." She said, getting up abruptly.

"Something bothering you?" he asked with a smirk.

"Oh what could possibly be bothering me!"

"Enjoy the shower."

It was all she could do not to turn back and throw the nearest cushion at his annoying, arrogant head.

Ginny awoke clutching her bedclothes tightly to her chest and found she was screaming. Her hair was matted to her head in a terrified sweat and once again, her breathing was quick and shallow. It was the same dream, or rather nightmare, and all she could see were those eyes, brilliant and horrifying at the same time.

"What? What's wrong!" she heard Draco's voice as he came into the room, switching the light on.

She looked up at him, recovering her senses and let go of the bedclothes. "Sorry, dream, bad dream. Sorry to wake you." It must have been bad, she was apologising to Malfoy.

"Merlin Weasley, you wake me up for a dream!"

"I said I was sorry! I can't help it, it just happens." She said with a sigh.

"No wonder you look like hell." He said, taking a seat on the edge of the bed, which Ginny returned with a frown. "Recurring?" She nodded.

"Far too often. I'm fine, go back to bed."

"I'll have a word with Snape tomorrow about getting you some Dreamless Sleep potion, I don't much fancy being woken up every night."

"You're so caring and considerate."

"I try."

Cithara: Well that's your lot for now, hope you liked.

Draco: Still no action I see.

Cithara: Hold your horses, you can't rush these things you know.

Draco: Why not exactly?

Cithara: You just can't. Listen who's running this show anyway? You'll do what I say when I say!

Draco: Yeah like that's going to happen!

Cithara: It had better or I'll get the needle out again. Draco flees for his life That showed him! If you lovely people out there would like to take the time to review, I'd be very grateful, it warms my little heart to read them! Later days xXxXx


	3. chapter 3 On the run

**AN: Hey hey, I've had this chapter written for a good long while but somehow just haven't got round to posting it, life just seems to get in the way far too often these days. Thanks a million to riah riddle and yaoi – is – wowie21, I really appreciate the comments! I'm also having to write "Scene change" between the, well, scene changes (!), because for some reason the stars and stuff I use on Word don't show up. Also, I'm looking for a beta reader, so if anyone would like to oblige, please email me, you can find my address in my bio.**

**Disclaimer: I just realised I actually haven't written one of these for the last two chapters, oh well, I haven't been sued yet! Ok, you know the deal, I know the deal, I'm not J.K Rowling, at least, that's what my psychiatrist says…**

**Anyhoo, on with the story….**

"So how's it going?" asked Faith as she and Ginny sat in Potions, preparing the concoction Snape had set them.

"As well as it possibly could, considering the situation." Ginny returned, adding ingredients as Faith handed them to her.

"I can't believe you were moved from the dorm. Well at least you're being kept safe, that's the main thing. Where is this room then?"

"I'm not allowed to say. You know I trust you completely, but I've been told to keep it secret, sorry."

"No worries. Right, that's everything, turn the fire on."

Ginny did so, watching the mixture begin to bubble. She was annoyed that she couldn't share what she was going through with Faith, she hadn't even been allowed to tell her about Malfoy. She had only been at Hogwarts for a term, but they had just clicked as soon as they met. Before Faith had lived in France with her father and had attended Beauxbuxtons, then she'd moved back to England with her mother and had made the transition to Hogwarts. She and Ginny were close so it was frustrating for Ginny not to be able to share this with her.

As she stirred the potion she noticed there was a pale, pink mist rising from it that wasn't right for the type of potion it was. She looked at it and found she couldn't stop looking at it, something captivated her. She was aware of voices, somewhere, distant, but they weren't important, nothing was important, nothing but the mist.

**Scene change**

Draco lay sprawled in a chair by Ginny's bedside. She had been brought back up to the room after Madame Pomfrey had treated her; it had been thought best not to keep her in the hospital wing, there was no guarantee she would be safe there and it would look extremely odd for Draco Malfoy to be stationed at the bedside of a Weasley.

She had woken briefly, but had not really had the wherewithal to make conversation. She had been poisoned through the potion she was making; a rogue ingredient of dragon scale poison had found its way into the mix, and when mixed with the other ingredients, it let off a potent mist that clouded the mind and was slowly inhaled, finding its way into the bloodstream. It was a powerful way of poisoning someone and it had done the ticket for Ginny, she had been out for almost five hours.

When she woke up the first thing he was going to do was say 'I told you so'. If she'd only listened and not gone to lessons as had been suggested, none of this would have happened. But oh no, let someone tell her what to do? Not a chance. She was so unbelievably stubborn, how on earth someone like her was supposed to be protected Merlin only knew. But he'd made a decision and there was no way she was going to oppose it.

**Scene change**

Ginny awoke to an incessant pounding behind her eyes, never before had she felt so ill. Her whole body ached and she felt as though her head were about to explode. It was an extreme effort to open her eyes and when she did, she wished she had kept them closed. Draco was sitting, or rather lounging, on a chair next to her bed, an eyebrow raised and his arms folded. Why did she get the feeling he was about to say 'I told you so'?

She propped herself up, not an easy process when your arms felt as though they would snap off at any given moment. Squinting in the sunlight, she looked at him again and asked, "What the hell happened?"

"Poison, of the most potent kind. How are you feeling?"

"Well I….."

"Can you walk?"

"Why?"

"We're getting out of here, pack your things, we're going as soon as possible."

"Just wait a minute!" said Ginny, throwing back the bedcovers and following him as he began going round the room, getting things together. He'd obviously gone mad. Maybe Harry had given him a slap too many and he'd snapped. Where exactly were they meant to be going? They couldn't leave Hogwarts, there was nowhere safer, if they left they'd be caught in a second. "Stop!" she said, taking the clothing he had picked up and putting it back. "What do you think you're doing!"

"Getting ready to go."

"Go where? We can't leave, we'd be killed the second we left the boundaries!"

"You're obviously no safer here, we have to get out."

"You mean we're going on the run?"

"If you have to put it like that." Why couldn't she just listen and go along with it? Why did she have to complicate everything? "Just get what you need and we're gone."

**Scene change**

It was still dark when Draco and Ginny left. There were only a few hours left until dawn and Draco wanted to be well gone before light, he wanted to put as much distance between them and Hogwarts as possible before anyone knew they'd gone. It was a miracle they were going at all with the fuss Ginny had made, it had taken a good half an hour to get her to agree and then another fifteen minutes for her to get herself sorted. He could understand why Voldemort was threatening her life, he was about ready to join him.

His plan was as yet uncertain, they were effectively 'on the run' as she had put it, but after a time they'd run out of places they could run to. There were a few people he could trust and he'd seek refuge with them at some point. The problem was how to get around. He'd decided against brooms, too conspicuous, but he'd arranged with Dumbledore to have a few portkeys placed here and there, for the most part they'd just have to rely on their feet. No doubt that wouldn't sit well with her either.

"Keep up Weasley or I'll leave you here."

"Oh well that would be a great form of protection, I'm so glad Dumbledore chose you for my guardian." She said with sugary sweetness.

They were travelling lightly, and what they did have with them had been shrunk so it would fit easily into their pockets, they couldn't afford to be weighed down. She was frightened, there was no point denying it, but she wasn't going to let him know that. The idea that someone could have poisoned her, someone with all probability in Hogwarts itself, was so terrifying that she had to keep driving it from her mind for fear of it sending her mad.

She had at first been completely adverse to the idea of leaving, Hogwarts was where people went to seek help and safety, it was a symbol of hope and sanctuary, a safe haven. Now that was all gone, at least for her and she had nothing to place the belief of her safety in, nothing but the boy striding on ahead in front of her. It didn't inspire much confidence, especially as up until a few days ago she had believed he was fighting for Voldemort, the perfect model for a future Deatheater. She wasn't sure she trusted him even now, still Dumbledore obviously did, and that had to count for something.

"Malfoy wait a second." She said, stopping and re-arranging her clothing.

"What now?"

"Well I just wanted to know whether or not you've figured out where the hell we're going yet."

"For now we just keep heading south, get away from here."

"We can't walk forever."

"Oh another complaint, well why am I not surprised? We have to keep going until it gets light, then, perhaps and only perhaps, we'll rest. Happy?"

"Not in the slightest." She said, marching off ahead of him. He was so sensitive to a girl's needs! Well maybe he could go on walking for days on end, but she was convinced she couldn't.

She was still shaken and weak from her earlier experience, all she wanted was to go to bed and stay there for a very long time, who knew when she next even see a bed? Who knew when she would next see anything or anyone again? She hadn't had a chance to say goodbye to anyone or explain the situation, Draco had refused point blank to goodbyes, it would only complicate things. Still, she wished she could have left a letter, anything to explain her sudden disappearance to the people she loved. There were a mixture of feelings mingled inside her at that moment, but above all else she was scared. She was frightened of what would happen, of what her future held in store for her, of all that lay ahead.

**Scene change**

It was almost dawn when Draco finally consented to stopping, though it had taken Ginny a good fifteen minutes to persuade him. They were well away from the borders of Hogwarts, although they were still deep in the countryside. Draco figured that they were becoming relatively near to the Scotland/England border and with any luck would be in England by midday. **(AN: I'm just assuming that Hogwarts is in Scotland because the train journey takes so long and it's surrounded by mountains etc etc!)** They just had to keep going, the further they could get before anyone realised they were gone, the better.

Having finally convinced Draco that she would die if they carried on a second longer, they were resting in a small valley, hidden by trees. Ginny never thought she would be so glad to take a seat on a cold, damp uncomfortable floor, but at that point it felt like heaven. They'd walked so far, and most of it in complete silence as neither had much conversation for the other, all things considered, it wasn't a pleasant journey. The fact that she was escaping a deranged psychopath didn't help much either.

They were sitting with their backs to a large oak tree, staring into the vast openness of the land and the distances they had yet to walk. Ginny's eyes were beginning to droop and she willingly gave into them; sleep was such a rare gift these days. Draco was not in the least bit tired, and even if he was, he could hardly fall asleep also, leaving them completely vulnerable to whatever threat lay out there for them. He was starting to regret his earlier hastiness; what if he had been wrong in taking them away from Hogwarts? What if they were now in greater danger than they were previously?

Well it was too late now for such thoughts, here they were and the only option left to them was to keep on going. They'd have to find somewhere to stay sooner or later or the little Weaselette would nag his ear off. Was it really so hard to just keep moving without whining every five seconds? Of all the people there were in the world, why in the name of sanity, did it have to be her he was protecting? Well she probably liked it just as much as he did, still, she could co-operate from time to time, just to make the whole thing slightly more bearable. If she wasn't careful, it wouldn't just be Voldemort she had to watch out for.

"Come on Weasley, wake up, time to go." He said, nudging her not too gently with his shoulder.

"You have got to be joking! We only just stopped, you can't be serious!"

"Deadly." He replied, rising to his feet and dragging her up with him, not an easy task when the person is doing all she can to stay on the floor.

"You're pure evil Malfoy, what harm could five more minutes have done?"

"Plenty." He threw over his shoulder as, once again, he strode off ahead of her, leaving her staring in disbelief.

She'd only just closed her eyes, only just felt the welcome warmth of sleep spread over her and he'd snatched it away. Oh she was going to cause him so much pain one day. Sighing and dusting her clothes off, she reluctantly caught up with him, falling into step alongside. He really didn't care that she'd just been poisoned with a very powerful substance and he really didn't care that all she needed was a decent sleep; he was going to carry on regardless and keep going until she collapsed!

"Please tell me we at least know where we're going?"

"I'm working on it." He replied.

"How comforting."

**Scene change**

Draco was right, they were in England a little before midday, and it was something of a relief to see the landscape becoming slightly flatter. High gradients, she had found, didn't agree with Ginny. They had briefly stopped, but of course, it hadn't been for long and it was now early evening, although being winter, it was pitch black. The weather had also decided to oblige and had produced heavy rain and strong winds. Ginny was going to kill Draco.

"This is ridiculous! We can't carry on like this! Never mind bloody Voldemort, we'll die of pneumonia!"

"Do you think you can give it a rest for five seconds! For Merlin's sake Weasley, I've never known anyone go on as much as you! You're only happy when you're moaning someone's ear off!"

"Oh yeah, I'm really happy now! This is like Christmas come early for me!" she shouted back, stopping and facing him. Her hair was completely soaked and matted to her head and her clothing was sticking uncomfortably to her body.

"You know I could just leave you here!"

"Feel free! You're about as much good at protecting people as you are at winning a quidditch match!" she bit back, storming off ahead, shoving her hair out of her face and trying to sort her robes out into some semblance of order.

"Weasley." No answer. "Weasley!" she turned around.

"What now?"

"There's a light over there. I thought maybe you'd want to check it out." He said, pointing in the opposite direction to the one she was going. She paused for a while, then finally decided her comfort was more important than her desire not to admit he was right. She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly, and walked back and past Draco towards the light he was pointing to. She deliberately didn't look at him; she already knew the smug look that would be plastered across his face.

The light was further than it looked and it took them about half an hour to reach it. When they finally did, Ginny thought she would die from pleasure. It was coming from one of the windows of a large, beautiful gothic abbey. A look of pure delight spreading across her face, Ginny almost skipped up to the enormous, decorative wooden door and knocked.

"It's an abbey, they have to give us sanctuary. I don't care what you say, we have to stay somewhere, at least until the rain stops. Please?" seeing that there was no way she would be dissuaded, Draco grudgingly joined her underneath the arch of the front door and waited for someone to answer. He wouldn't admit it to her, but he too would be glad of a reprieve from the weather. After a few minutes, the door finally creaked open and a middle-aged man appeared before them, shielding his face from the rain that was lashing down.

"We saw you coming, come in, come in." he said, stepping aside and letting them slide in to the vast, high-roofed hall.

"We're sorry to trouble you like this, our………car broke down and we got lost trying to find some help." Said Ginny, improvising an excuse.

"Not at all. You're welcome to stay the night, if you'll just follow me I'll show to where you can stay."

He picked up a nearby oil lamp and led them up a wide, stone staircase and through a long and winding passageway and into what appeared to be living quarters. Opening a door to his right, he motioned for Draco and Ginny to step into the room. Ginny could have kissed him. It was spacious, warm, it had beds and best of all, it was dry. She gave a contented sigh and turned to face the old man.

"Thank you so much, you have no idea how glad I am to see a bed!"

"No trouble. You get some rest now, you can stay as long as you need to." He left the lamp and gave a nod to Draco before leaving them in peace.

"I think I've died and gone to heaven!" Ginny sighed, collapsing on one of the beds in a satisfied heap.

"I hope not or I won't have done my job very well." Draco replied, sitting down on the bed opposite, pushing his sodden hair from his face and wringing the water out of his robes. It was somewhat of a relief to be out of the unbearable weather and at least they should be relatively safe here, not that he was planning to stay for very long. Ginny merely rolled her eyes as a response, she was far too concerned with the softness of the bed and the hypnotic warmth the fire was offering.

Having removed his soaking top clothing, Draco moved over to the large window and surveyed the land around him. It was highly unlikely they had been followed, but he wasn't taking any chances. If they needed to, they could make a quick exit out the window, that would take them onto a wide ledge then it would really be up to them to make the rest of the descent, it wasn't really high up enough to be a threat to bones. With all luck they wouldn't have to use it, they could just leave instead of escape. Wouldn't that be a novel thing to do?

Well at least they should be safe for the night, should being the operative word of course. You could never rely on 'shoulds' or 'might-be's', they were far too unpredictable, especially in unpredictable circumstances.

"Alright Weasley, listen. I think we should…….." on turning round he found she had crashed out on the bed and was lost in sleep. "For Merlin's sake, I'm more worried about her safety than she is!"

**End of chappie**

Cithara: I think that should do for now, interesting?

Draco: Could have been more so. I get some action in the next chapter right?

Ginny: Dream on pal.

Cithara: You'll just have to wait a bit, let it play out gradually.

Draco: You've got to be kidding! I signed on to get some action, not to be 'gradual'!

Cithara: Well tough. Now shut up I'm trying to have a conversation with the readers!

Draco: Well sorry! I guess I'm not as important as they are!  
Cithara: You said it mate! turns back to readers Now if you gorgeous people want to spread a bit of love, why not start here? All you have to do is type in a few little words and tell me what you think. What do you say? Go on, you know you want to! Later days.


	4. Almost, but not quite

**Hey, yes it's me again, here with the next instalment of this literary whirlwind! (God what the hell is wrong with me!) Oh and by the way I'm still looking for a beta, so if anyone would like to oblige, please let me know either in a review or otherwise. Anyway, I can't go any further without thanking my wonderful reviewers who make my day:**

**Riah riddle: Ah my faithful reviewer! What can I say but thanks for your continued support, long may it continue!**

**HpRoXmYnOnExIsTiNtSoX: (great name by the way!) Thanks so much for your review, I had a shitty day up in London **

** and it just cheered me right up! Keep reading, I hope it gets better as it goes on.**

**ShadowOnTheMoon: I haven't planned for them to go to America as of yet, but thanks for the suggestion! As for your **

** guess about a certain character – I can neither confirm nor deny it, you'll have to keep reading to**

** find out! ;-)**

**RenegadeMustang: Glad you like the summary, I was having trouble with it, I hate those things! Hope you keep reading!**

**Disclaimer: Do I really have to do this? Is anyone stupid enough to believe I'm J.K? I doubt it and if you are, you should seek help immediately.**

**Anyways, that's enough shit chat for now (yes I did mean shit), on with the story….**

**PDPDPDPDPD**

"I feel……….better!" said Ginny the next morning, washing her face and neck in the iron basin that had been left on the window ledge. Last night had been the first time in a long time that she had simply fallen asleep and slept the whole night through. It was wonderful.

"Bully for you." Replied Draco, he'd only managed to get about fifteen minutes sleep the whole night, and was somewhat less than thrilled.

"Oh what's your problem?" she asked, throwing her towel at his head, nothing and nobody was going to dampen her mood.

There were plenty of things that were his problem that morning, none of which he was willing to share with her at the point in time. He was far too preoccupied with both his lack of sleep and his worries about what lay ahead to even retaliate by throwing the towel back at her. What annoyed him most was that she didn't even seem bothered she had a deranged psycho after her while he sat thinking two moves ahead to secure their safety.

"It must be bad, you wouldn't normally pass up an opportunity to throw something at me."

"Do you ever stop talking?"

"Oh get stuffed." She said, walking over to the door.

"No where are you going?"

"Anywhere where you aren't!" she said, storming out. She couldn't be around him that morning, any morning in fact. He just didn't understand; she'd been taken away from her friends, her family, her home in a sense, and placed within the care of someone she wasn't exactly crazy about. He just expected her to get on and deal with it. Well it wasn't that simple, at least, not to her.

She paused for a second and found she had stumbled in to some sort of orchard. Despite the heavy rain of the previous night and dull clouds that were still hanging over in the sky, it was beautiful. Small wooden benches were strategically placed around the orchard and there was a large pond in the middle with an ancient looking bridge over it. It was obviously designed to evoke a sense of calm, and for the first time in a long while it was evoked in Ginny.

"Can I help you?"

Startled, Ginny turned around to see the monk from the night before standing before her.

"Oh, no I was just getting some air, but thank you."

"I would ask what you were running from, but it seems like a rather personal question." He said, taking a seat on one of the benches, looking up at her with worn, grey eyes.

"You know?" asked Ginny incredulously.

"There's not much that get past this old man these days." He replied with a laugh. "And how many teenagers do you know who wander around in the pouring rain in the middle of the night seeking refuge?"

**PDPDPDPDPDPDPD**

Ginny strolled back into the bedroom later that night, feeling calmer and more composed having had a day to herself in which to think and have some space. Draco was sitting on the edge of his bed, his eyes roving over a map, he didn't bother to acknowledge her presence. He had been trying to figure out the best way to get to Yorkshire; he had had a portkey placed there to take them to Liverpool, then from Liverpool to London. They were roughly 4 days away by foot, but going the inconspicuous way would probably add a day or two on. Still, better to be safe than dead.

His eyes were heavy and the rest of his body was starting to feel the strain of little sleep and much travelling. If they could use their brooms it would be easier, but then they ran the risk of being seen, not least being seen by muggles, and a snapshot of them in the national paper was really the last thing they needed in the name of stealth. So walking was really the only option open to them at that point, one that he didn't exactly relish, especially not with Raggedy Ann whining the whole way. Why did guarding someone involve having to be with them twenty four hours a day?

"Did you hear that?" asked Ginny, turning round to face him. "Like a crash."

"Someone probably just dropped something."

"No, it sounded more……..violent than that."

Sighing, Draco moved out onto the landing and looked over the banister at the floor below. 'Violent' didn't even begin to cover it. On the ground were three of the monks, each with a sword lodged in their hearts. The looks on their faces were of pure terror and shock. "Oh shit." He breathed. Turning around, he swept back into the room and jammed the door shut behind him. "We're leaving." He said, grabbing Ginny's arm and pulling her over to the window.

"What? Why? What's going on?" she asked, pulling herself free.

"We've been found."

He didn't need to say anything more; Ginny flung her stuff together and made ready to escape. Draco was looking out onto the window ledge. It was wide enough, wide enough for two people at least, though it would be a bit of a squeeze. He hadn't a clue where Voldemort's men were, but if they could just get out of the building and away to the woods, they might just have a chance.

"How are you with heights?" he asked, a somewhat amused look on his face.

"How are you with mending broken bones?" she replied sarcastically, stepping over to the window and looking down. Draco stepped out, taking care to keep his balance and shifted himself round so his back was up against the wall. He reached out his hand and she gingerly took it, sliding out of the window and onto the ledge next to him. As they silently assessed their situation, they heard the door of their room fling open and the sound of at least three heavy pairs of footsteps followed. Ginny's heart thudded and she could feel Draco's breathing quicken as she stood listening to them ransack the room, overturning everything and throwing things against the wall. As they finally discovered the room was unoccupied, she heard them make one last breakage then leave.

"Shit that was too close." She said, letting out the breath she'd been holding. "We have to get out of here."

"Only way is down." He replied, looking in that direction. "Count of three?" she nodded. "One…" then without warning he jumped, pulling her down with him.

"Bastard." She hissed as she hit the floor, the shock reverberating through her whole body. He merely threw her a sardonic smile and pulled her up, dragging her away into the trees. They stopped and looked back, their hearts racing and the cold biting bitterly into them. The place was swarming with Deatheaters, sinister figures of the night, their sole purpose to find the two people who stood concealed on the edge of the woods.

"Come on, let's get out of here before they realise we've gone." He said, moving slowly away into the darkness of the night.

**PDPDPDPDPDPDP**

Harry and Ron moved swiftly to Dumbledore's office; it had been three days since Ginny had disappeared and now news had reached them that Draco Malfoy was also missing. Dumbledore had told them not to worry, everything was in hand, but they weren't to be fobbed off so easily and now they were returning to move him into action and to get some answers.

The gargoyle had already been moved for some reason so they climbed the stairs and then into Dumbledore's study. On finding it empty they looked around then decided the best thing they could do was to take a seat and wait for him to arrive. Ron was obviously uptight and in no mood for light conversation so Harry merely contented himself with staring at Fawkes who seemed to be in the prime of life at that moment. He was worried, they both were; Ginny's sudden disappearance was certainly cause for concern and with all the recent goings on, they had every right to be troubled.

"She'll be alright." Said Harry, looking over at his friend.

"I wish I had your confidence. Who knows what's happened to her? She could be lying in a ditch somewhere and everyone's doing sod all to find out!"

"That's not strictly true Mr Weasely." Came Dumbledore's old, deep voice from behind them. Ron shifted slightly in his chair and Dumbledore moved round to sit at his desk. He was looking old, older than he had in a long time, and worried, he looked decidedly worried. Positioning himself comfortably, he placed his glasses on the end of his nose and peered over them at the two young men sitting before him. "I understand your concerns Mr Weasely, but you must trust me, your sister is most certainly not lying in a ditch somewhere."

"No disrespect sir, but you don't know that, I don't know that. I want some answers sir; I'm not going to settle for vague details anymore. She's my sister and I have a right to know what's happened to her."

Dumbledore sighed and stood up, moving around to regard Fawkes. He didn't know what would be the best to tell them. Ron was right, it wasn't fair to keep him in the dark and leave him fretting about the fate of his sister. All the same, if they knew what had happened to her, where she was and most of all who she was with, it could jeopardise the whole situation. "Mr Weasely," he began slowly, considering his words carefully. "There is something that you should perhaps ought to know. Your sister………your sister has become the object of Voldemort's desire, he wishes to have her once again. It was thought that we would be able to keep her safe here, but it seems we were mistaken; he was able reach her. Never fear," he said holding up his hand to silence the words that were about the escape Ron. "She is well and unharmed, but for her safety we decided it would be best to remove her from Hogwarts with an escort."

"And this escort would be?" asked Ron, trying to control his anxiety.

"I'm unable to tell you that I'm afraid."

"But sir," Harry cut in, sensing that Ron was about to say something he'd regret. "Don't you think we have a right to know? We just want to know who she's with and that she's safe with that person." He said calmly.

"I'm sorry but I can't tell you. Now, I'm sure you have lessons that you should be attending right now so please make sure you do, and don't worry, your sister's in good hands."

"Whose?" muttered Ron as they turned to leave.

**PDPDPDPDPDPDP**

Ron and Harry sat in the deserted Gryffindor common room later that night, staring into the fire. Ron had refused to go to bed, and Harry, deciding that it would be best if he weren't left alone, had stayed with him. Since their earlier meeting with Dumbledore, Ron had said little, but had spend most of the day with his eyes fixated on something only he could see. All that was in his mind was Ginny, and Harry knew that he was feeling that he'd let her down in some way, that he should have been the one to protect her.

"Why don't you go and get some sleep mate?" he said, leaning back in the armchair.

"No, I'll only disturb the others, you go up if you want."

"And leave you down here on your own? You must be joking."

The silence fell again and Ron went back to staring intently at the fire, as if he would somehow find the answer in the depth of the flames. It had been six years since Voldemort had posed a direct threat to Ginny, and Ron was so sure that that would be the end of their troubles, or at least Ginny's. He should have known, should have been able to do something, anything, and now she was Merlin knew where, with Merlin knew who. Some brother he was.

"Hang on a second," he said, sitting up, an idea suddenly dawning on him. "It's not just Ginny who's done a disappearing act."

"What are you talking about?" asked Harry, a frown appearing.

"Malfoy, he's gone too!"

"No, Dumbledore wouldn't send Ginny off with the President of Deatheaters Anonymous! It's just a coincidence."

Ron stood up and walked over to the long, thin window, looking out into the vast darkness. It had to be him, he was no believer of coincidences, especially not this one. Draco Malfoy was with his little sister, alone and unaccompanied. For all he knew, Malfoy was taking her to be part of some sadistic Deatheater ritual. Well, not while he had breath left in him. Clenching his fists, he swept up the stairs and into the dorm, getting together everything he thought he might need.

"Ron what the hell are you doing!" hissed Harry as he followed Ron into the room.

"I'm going after her. Now are you coming or you just going to stand there?"

"As if I have a choice!"

PDPDPDPDPDPDP

Cithara: Well that's your lot for now, if you're very good, you'll get another chapter very soon!

Ginny: You made me jump off a frigging window ledge, are you insane!

Cithara: It adds drama!

Ginny: It adds pain!

Cithara: Same thing in my book!

Draco: Come of it babe, who are you kidding? You loved the opportunity of being in such close proximity with me!

Ginny: Oh I relished every second of it.

Draco: I know.

Ginny: You are such an egotistical, narrow minded……

Draco: Yeah yeah I love you too honey!

Cithara: Oh give it a break guys! You're giving me a headache. Now, back to you people who've just spent the past however many minutes reading this, I would really, really, really love if you clicked on the little button that lets you review. Then all you have to do is type in a few little words. That's really all it takes to make my day, so please, put a smile on my face!


	5. It's just a dream

Hello again one and all, tis me, back with yet another instalment of this masterpiece (yeah right!) Anyways, I was going to post this earlier in the week, but I was SWAMPED with work, making it a total impossibility! Anyway it's here now, so I hope you enjoy! I'm STILL looking for a BETA, so please if anyone's remotely interested, please say so in the review (hint: leave a review!), or email me. Also, if anyone has any ideas for a new summary for this story, let me know, because I'm not totally happy with this one.

Review thank you's (which I have to say are sadly lacking sniff):

**Riah riddle:** What would I do without you? You always put a smile on my face! Don't abandon me or I'll cry! Keep reading and reviewing, it really is appreciated.

**Helldarkangel1:** I'm so glad you like it so much! I'll hopefully manage to update once a week, but with exams on the horizon, we'll have to see!

**Bright Eyes:** Thanks for your comments, hope you stay with the story.

Disclaimer: If I _am_ J.K. no one's told me about it.

Hope you like………..

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Ginny sat at the base of a large oak, warming her hands on the recently made fire. They had walked at an incredible pace all night and the first sights of dawn were beginning to appear on the horizon. She was tired, they both were and they had finally agreed that they were sufficiently out of danger to stop. They'd kill themselves otherwise. It was freezing, being the middle of winter it was only to be expected, but fact didn't take the edge off the chill that was sinking itself into Ginny's bones.

She shivered and moved closer to the fire, trying to draw as much warmth from it as possible. Her ankle was hurting after she had fallen on it awkwardly when they had jumped from the ledge. She could have killed Draco, shock wasn't her favourite emotion and being thrown off a fairly tall building didn't rank high on her list of chosen activities either. She'd give anything for a warm comfortable bed, anything; she was convinced she'd even sell her soul at that point. Draco was sitting opposite her, his hand on his left shoulder, rotating it round in its socket; he'd obviously been affected by the fall too.

"Something wrong?" she asked, looking over at him.

"No, just my shoulder, I landed on it awkwardly."

"Let's have a look." She said, crossing over to sit by him. She placed her hands carefully on his shoulder, easing it gently round, paying careful attention to the fact that he winced every time it was moved. "You might have dislocated it, or it could just be a sprain. Wait a second." She reached into the pockets of her robes and pulled out a roll of bandages, then carefully began securing his shoulder, taking care not to cause him any further pain. "I'm no doctor, but that should help, or at least make it more comfortable."

"Thanks." He said tersely, replacing his robes on his shoulder and turning his attention back to the fire.

"It's the gratitude I love." She said, getting up and walking gingerly away from the fire.

"You're limping."

"A brilliant observation."

"Can you walk?"

"I'll manage." She said, looking out into the vast, bleak forest, shrouded in darkness. There was every chance that Voldemort or his Deatheaters were close behind and after what had happened at the abbey, she was feeling more vulnerable than ever. She would never be rid of him, she knew that now; ever since he had infected her all those years ago, he had remained with her, he'd contaminated her. It was a terrible thing to feel so violated, so completely powerless that all you could do was shut your eyes and pray for the evil to disappear.

"You'll freeze if you stay away from the fire." Warned Draco, his voice cutting into her thoughts.

"I'm already freezing." She replied, sitting back down again. "I don't like not knowing what's out there, it makes me nervous." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a packet of cigarettes, taking one and lighting it. She was meant to have given up, but nobody ever really gave up, they only had long spells when they went without.

"You smoke?" asked Draco derisively.

"My, you're really on the ball tonight aren't you?" Ginny cut back, closing her eyes as she took a drag. She could even cope with Draco when she had a fag in her hand.

"Doesn't exactly fit in with your innocent little girl image does it?" he said with a sneer.

"Innocence is a privilege few have, and when they do they don't appreciate it. I haven't been 'innocent' as you put it for quite some time now, I hardly think a cigarette here or there is going to make much difference."

Draco was unable to reply to this somewhat sudden revelation and so he merely carried on looking at the girl standing above him, cigarette in hand, leaning against the tree and looking up through the canopy of trees at the night sky. It occurred to him that this girl, for that was all she seemed, was completely unfathomable, there was a depth to her that no one could penetrate, that no one could get near. Maybe the things that lay in her past had affected her more than anyone could possibly know.

"Everyone thinks they know so much about me, thinks they know who the hell I am, let me tell you something; they haven't got a clue." She said bitterly.

"So what's so complicated about little Miss Weasley then?" he said, getting to his feet and standing next to her, taking the cigarette from her hand, and taking a draw.

"More than you could possibly imagine." She replied, taking it back off him. "People look at me and they see this girl; what could she possibly know about the world? What does she know of fear, of disgust of all the rottenness and evil that consumes the dark part of this world? What does she know of anything?" she paused and looked up at the stars, an embittered smile playing on her lips. "I know more than they ever will."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

It was a dream, she knew it was a dream, but somehow, she just couldn't detach herself from it. It was all-consuming, it had engulfed her and drawn her down into a place she knew all too well, a place where the dark things lay buried, buried but not forgotten. He was there, of course he was, every moment whether asleep or awake was filled with him, his eyes, his hands, his voice; all directed at her, designed to work on her and deprive her of her sanity. He stood opposite her, a head taller, looking down at her, his eyes reaching into her mind, her soul, trying to penetrate what was behind them. The look on his face told her he would never give up, never. He would chase her until she drew her last breath, at every stage of her life, he would be there, watching, waiting, waiting to destroy her.

She was his passion, his obsession, he hungered for her and until he could have her, her dreams were his way of having her. His eyes bored into her, he needed no words, his eyes were his mouthpiece; they told of all the things he would do to her, everything that boiled away in him. Always he took the form of Tom, handsome, young but still entirely threatening, as he was now, standing in front of her, one hand brushing the hair from her face; a tender move for anyone but him. She would always belong to him, no matter how she tried to tell herself otherwise. Once in a grip so powerful, it was near impossible to remove yourself from it.

"Please." She whispered.

"Please what?"

"Let me go."

"Never."

"What good can I possibly be to you?"

"Oh," he said with a low, soft laugh. "Plenty." And he bent down and kissed her roughly, pushing her up against the wall.

Ginny shot awake with a jolt, her breathing harsh and her pulse quick. She was on the verge of tears, but she had learned how to control herself, how to keep the mask from slipping. She looked across and saw Draco was awake, sitting in front of the fire, looking at her. His expression was rather neutral, maybe perhaps thoughtful, but the sneer she was expecting was absent.

"Bad dream." She said shakily.

"So I gathered."

She pushed herself up and went to sit by the fire, opposite Draco. She was trembling, she knew she was. She could control what she displayed with her face, what she said, but her body always had other ideas. All she could think was how his hands were all over her, how his lips were against hers, kissing her harshly, how the stones of the wall had pushed into her back as he had pressed against her. All these memories were the cause of her present state, and try as she may; she was finding it difficult to control herself. Everywhere she looked she saw his face, even in the flames of the fire she had her eyes fixed upon.

"It was only a dream, he can't hurt you." Came Draco's voice. She looked up and saw he was still wearing the same expression and she realised he had been watching her for some time.

"How did you know I was dreaming of him?"

"Who else could get you like this?"

"I'm fine."

"It looks it."

"It's just something that happens now and then, I can deal with it. Like you said, it's only a dream." She said, rubbing her hands to try and bring some warmth to them. "You were wrong about the other part though; he can hurt me."

"No he can't, not if you don't let him."

"It's not as simple as that." She replied, feeling calmer now the world was beginning to shift back into perspective. She could feel the memory slowly begin to slip away. It never fully left her; rather it retreated to a part of mind where she was still conscious of its presence, without it dominating all.

"Get some sleep, we've a long day ahead of us."

"No point, I won't be able to sleep now. Anyway, I'm used to watching the sun come up."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

It was under the cover of a black, velvet sky that Ron and Harry made their escape. They had waited until everyone had gone to bed, then they'd checked the Marauder's Map to be completely sure they would not be discovered. They were of course under the trusty Invisibility Cloak, trying their best to make as little noise as possible, although it was hard when two full-grown young men were trying to fit under the one garment. It had been alright when they were eleven, now they were older it was becoming more difficult to maintain stealth.

"Do you think you could try to keep your elbow out of my eye?" Harry whispered through the darkness to Ron.

"Only if you stop treading on my feet, bloody hell you've got no spatial awareness whatsoever!"

"That's rich coming from you! You know sometimes I think…." But Harry didn't get to tell Ron what it was he thought as the Cloak was whipped from them. Spinning round, expecting to see Snape with an evil smirk or Dumbledore with a 'you shouldn't really be doing this' look, they were, to say the least, surprised at seeing Blaise Zabini standing before them, the Cloak in her right hand, her left on her hip.

"Wow, you guys could join the Secret Service, surreptitiousness is obviously big with you." She said with a raised eyebrow.

"What do you want?" asked Harry, more than a little embarrassed at being rumbled, and by a Slytherin no less.

"You're going to find the youngest Weasley brat, I want to find Draco. I know they're together, I don't know why but I know they are."

"What do you care?" asked Ron. "Oh wait, you're shagging him right?"

Blaise's ice blue eyes flashed with anger and she threw the Cloak back so it hit Ron square in the face. She composed herself and decided she would only address Harry, as the Weasley boy was obviously not worth the oxygen. "He's a friend, I'm worried, ergo I'm going with you. Try to stop me and you'll find out just how good Slytherins are at the Dark Arts."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

It had been three days since Ginny and Draco had left the abbey and they were still a day's journey from Yorkshire, but they had reached a small town just outside. They were both exhausted as the sleep they had both managed to get had been minimal, and neither was in top physical condition from the fall. The town was small, quaint even, and the sight of something remotely close to civilization looked like pure heaven to Ginny whose aching feet and tired muscles were crying out for a modicum of comfort.

She and Draco had agreed that the next town they came to they would stay the night, there were only so many nights of sleeping rough they could stand. It was almost dark when they arrived and they decided to settle for what they find. This was a small B & B with very little facilities, but they had beds, and that was all Ginny cared about.

"Can I help you?" asked a middle-aged woman, behind the desk as they entered.

"A room for the night please."

"Number thirteen, top of the stairs, first on the right."

Following the directions, they found themselves standing in a modest room, dimly lit, but it looked comfortable enough. It was most definitely an improvement from the cold, hard floor of the forest. Anything was better than that.

"I guess she thought we were an item." Said Ginny.

"How do you figure that?" asked Draco, his mind preoccupied re-arranging his robes into some acceptable state.

"We have a double bed."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Ron, Harry and Blaise stood outside the abbey, trying to rid themselves of the image that had ingrained itself on their minds. So much blood, so much death. It was obvious what had happened, a blind man would have known. They stood, leaning against the old stone wall, trying to catch their breaths and trying to will themselves not to be sick. The bodies had been massacred, that was the only word to describe it. That was more than just killing, that was pure enjoyment.

"Oh shit," breathed Harry as the image of the terrified faces of the monks passed across his mind. "Oh shit."

"If they can do that to innocent people who've never been involved in any of this, what the hell are they going to do to my sister?" asked Ron, his voice shaky and uncertain.

"Hey there's something here." Said Harry as his eyes were attracted by something sparkling in the light of the new morning sun. He moved closer to it, and on closer inspection found in was a bracelet, a bracelet he knew. "Ron it's Ginny's, I gave her it as a Christmas present last year." He said, showing Ron the article in question. "She must have lost it when they escaped."

"Doesn't tell us whether she's alive or dead though does it?" he asked acrimoniously.

"No, but don't you see? We can use it for a locater spell, we can track her!" he said and watched Ron's eyes light up.

"I always knew there was a reason I was friends with you! Bloody marvellous, bloody, bloody marvellous!"

"Oh for Merlin's sake let's get going! They'll be half way across the country if you two don't get your arses in gear. Why I didn't just go alone I will be questioning for the rest of my life!" she said, strutting off in front of them.

"You and me both 'sweetheart'!" said Harry, rolling his eyes.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

"No way am I bunking with a Weasley!" said Draco, flinging his things down on the bed in question. "It's bad enough I'm in a dump like this, surrounded by muggles, but there is no way I'm sharing my sleeping space with you!"

"You think I like it any more than you?"

"Oh you've just been waiting for an opportunity to get me in the sack." He said, inspecting the muggle-infested room, with a look of obvious distaste.

"Dream on ferret-boy." She said, rolling her eyes and taking a look at the attached bathroom. The sight of a shower was a welcome one indeed. There was only so much mud and dirt a girl's complexion could take! She was willing to put up with the condescending company of Malfoy for a warm shower. "Look, like it or not we're stuck with it, so you might as well stop complaining, as hard as I'm sure that is for you."

"Says the Weasley girl." He muttered. "I'm going to see if I can get some food, try and stay alive for at least ten minutes hey?"

"I think I can manage without you thanks." She said, flopping down onto the bed. Letting its warmth sink into her muscles. It felt so good to have something soft underneath her, rather than the hard, cold floor of the forest, with its twigs and stones digging into her back.

She was so tired, the poison was finally seeping out of her system, but it had taken its toll. It had weakened her muscles and reaction time, leaving her somewhat vulnerable and filled with disquiet. The events of the past few days had left her shaken, especially the attack on the abbey; she couldn't help feeling guilty, after all if they hadn't have been there the monks wouldn't have been killed. They'd led the Deatheaters right there and now she had the murders of several men weighing on her conscience. Well, it was another thing to add to the mix of emotions that filled her up.

She heard the ancient creak door upon but didn't bother to open her eyes, why should she for that prat? "That was quick, find anything?"

"Oh yes." Came a voice that instantly told her it wasn't Draco. She shot up faster than she knew she was capable of and saw a robed figure advancing steadily towards her, his face masked.

She darted to the other side of the room, which put only the slightest bit of distance between them considering the size of the room. She grabbed for her wand, realising only too late that it was in the pocket of the robes she had slung the other side of the room, and failed to grab. "Shit." She breathed, her heart rate speeding to an unbearable rate. There was no way out, he was blocking her exit and the only other possible means of escape was the window, and she'd had just about enough of jumping out of windows.

He moved closer, slowly, menacingly, his height and full build a powerful weapon alone against her small, slight frame. She swallowed hard and prepared to fight, however she could. "Well then, imagine my joy at finding the youngest Weasley brat all alone and unprotected. Anything could happen to a little girl such as yourself, anything." He said, more than a little seedily.

"I don't see that somehow." Came a more than welcome voice from the doorway. Draco appeared and gave the figure one hell of a right hook that sent it flying. Before it had managed to get to its feet, Draco had extracted his wand and hit it with the Killing Curse, knocking the life out of it. "Are you ok?" said Draco, moving swiftly over to her and taking her face in his hands, his eyes meeting hers.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." She said a little shakily.

"He didn't hurt you?"

"No, he didn't get a chance."

"Good, good." Said Draco, realising he was still gently cupping her face, and bringing his hands back down to his sides, looking a little uncomfortable, which Ginny had not been aware he was capable of.

"You killed him." She said breathlessly.

"It isn't the first time." He said quietly, moving over to the body and pointing his wand at it, mumbling unrecognisable words. Instantly the body vanished, leaving behind not a single scrap of evidence that anything had ever took place. Ginny took a seat on the bed, staring at the empty space where the body had been.

"Thank you." She whispered, fearing that tears were about to threaten her eyes.

"I'm meant to be protecting you, that's what I did, no thanks needed." He said gruffly, taking a seat next to her.

"All the same, I'm grateful. It brought back….memories, ones that I'd rather forget. Still, sometimes that's easier said than done. They know where we are, we're not safe."

"We're never safe Weasley, but we can stay here for the night. There was only one of them, and I don't think he's giving away our position any time soon." He said, managing to evoke a small smile from the girl sitting next to him. "Get some sleep, I'll keep watch."

"You're sure, aren't you tired?" she asked, looking at the young man next to her, who had a weary look on his handsome face.

"Yes, but your need is greater than mine, you are a Weasley after all, the slightest little thing sets your heart a flutter!" he said, returning to his usual self. Ginny raised an eyebrow, but said nothing, settling down on the inviting bed, her eyes already giving in to the sheer exhaustion she felt. For some reason, Draco's presence at the foot of the bed provided Ginny with a comforting reassurance, one that she was surprised to be feeling, and one that gently soothed her to sleep.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Harry, Ron and Blaise had been walking through the night, using Ginny's bracelet as a guide, one they hoped would soon lead them to the girl herself. They were all tired, weary and on the verge of calling it a night, but it had been decided that if they stopped for rest there would be no hope of catching up with Draco and Ginny who had at least a three day head start. Hopefully they didn't move too quickly, hopefully they would be seeing them soon.

Blaise had said little since their departure from Hogwarts, which suited Ron and Harry just fine. They were unsurprisingly not too thrilled to have the Slytherin's company, but Blaise was not the sort of girl one argued with. They knew little of her; only she was part of the Malfoy gang and seemed to detest the "Dream Team". She was a striking girl, not pretty, striking. She had the kind of looks that could quite easily render a man speechless. Her raven coloured hair was straight and fell down her back, and her blue eyes were like ice that could cut deeply into a man's mind. If Draco was the Slytherin King, she was undoubtedly the Queen.

Her interest in Draco was unclear; Harry didn't really believe Ron's earlier presumption that she was "shagging" him, though it was of course possible. From what he had heard, Blaise wasn't exactly pure as the driven snow, but her insistence on going with them spoke of something more than just physical. Was it possible that one Slytherin could actually care for another? These days, anything seemed possible.

"We're getting nearer, the glow off the bracelet is turning pinker." Said Harry, cutting into the silence. "When it's red we're almost standing next to her. I think we've got a way to go though before that happens. Don't worry, we will find her." He added, seeing Ron's troubled look.

"Yeah, I know we will, just have to keep going don't we?" Harry nodded in answer, trying to keep his eyes focused and open on the way ahead.

"What do you suppose she's up to?" he asked, nodding towards Blaise.

"Merlin only knows, but we're stuck with her aren't we?"

"I have impeccably good hearing by the way." Came her crisp, rich voice from in front of them, not bothering to look back. "So do be careful what you say, I'd hate to have to waste a perfectly good hex on the likes of you."

"This is going to be a bundle of laughs!" said Ron, with a sigh, carrying onwards, his determination pushing him forward. He wouldn't fail his sister again.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Draco sat on the left hand side of the bed, his head resting against the wall, looking down at the small figure on his right who had fallen asleep a good hour since. He hated to admit it, but he had panicked when he had seen that Deatheater towering over Ginny, and Malfoys never, repeat never panicked. He ran a hand through his dishevelled hair, wishing he could sleep as easy as she was now, but even if they didn't have bloodthirsty killers after them, he wouldn't sleep, he hardly ever did. Like Ginny, he was haunted by memories, ones that more than often prevented him from closing his eyes easily.

Ginny shifted and turned to face him, burying her head deeper in the pillow, her soft red curls falling over it. He reached over and brushed the hair from her face, without really knowing why, it just seemed the obvious thing to do. He pulled his hand back and shook his head, mentally reprimanding himself. He was her protector, it was his job to keep her safe, but that was where it ended, no more, no less. But were things ever really that simple?

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Cithara: Well that's your lot for now, but I promise I'll update soon. Hey, do you hear that? What? you might say, exactly! No noise, no fighting nothing! They're not here! Ginny, Draco, any of them. I've sent them off to character boot camp! It's wonderful, I've almost retained my sanity! I strongly recommend it for any author suffering from out of control characters! Anyway, oh you already know what I'm going to say! Please review and I will worship you forever, or at least a day! Hehe, later days ;-)


	6. Meetings

Chapter 6

Hey everyone, wow I'm really impressed with myself, I'm updating regularly which I never thought I would manage to do! I now have a beta so, would you all please put you hands together for….:drum roll:…..Pia O'Leary! Thank you so much, long may our new working relationship continue! She had actually brought to my attention that J.K did actually confirm that Blaise is a guy, but that happened _after_ started writing this fic, and for reasons you'll see later…it's somewhat important that Blaise is female! Hope it doesn't put you off!

Anyway, on to the review responses (which are still sadly lacking :sniff:)

**riah riddle:** Knew I could depend on you! I always know when I see I have a review it'll be from you! I'm afraid Ginny and Tom won't meet for a while yet, but there _will_ be more dreams in which he torments her! Thanks again for your support.

**Helldarkangel1:** I feel for Ginny too, trust me, it gets worse for her! Hope you keep reading!

**Pia O'Leary:** Ok, I know you're my beta now, but after the wonderfully long review I think you deserve a response! Thanks for everything, you're a star!

**Eva Angel:** Wow! How enthusiastic! I was having a bad day and I read your review and it put a smile right on my face! Don't worry, I plan to stick with this one, and I have quite a bit more written. Keep reading, I'm glad you like it so much!

**Disclaimer:** Blah blah blah…not mine…blah blah blah…wish they were…blah blah blah. Come on, you know the deal.

On with the story….

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

The fingers of dawn brushed the horizon as Blaise, Harry and Ron reached the outside of Yorkshire. They had pushed on tirelessly through the night, stopping not once, pushing themselves as far as they could. The bracelet now gave a magenta glow; and was slowly beginning to resemble a reddish colour, meaning they were now not far from their much desired goal. This was welcome news to all three.

Harry kept having to mentally shake himself awake as his eyes tried, desperately to shut themselves, periodically. He was walking half in a daze, but he was sharp enough to spot the jutting root of a tree in time to avoid tripping. Blaise however, was not so alert and as she felt her balance being overruled, a pair of arms caught her just in time, placing her back in an upright position, opposite a pair of emerald eyes.

"Eyes open Zabini," he said with a smirk that unnervingly resembled Draco's.

"When I need your help I'll ask for it," she said with a growl.

"Oh you're welcome," he said, rolling his eyes and continuing forward, Blaise falling into step also. "Listen, what's the deal? Why are you here?"

"I've told you, to find Draco."

"But why? What's going on between you? Was Ron right, are you……"

"Don't say it, don't event think it!" she warned threateningly. "We're friends, just friends. He was good to me once; I owe him I suppose. Anyway why am I explaining myself to you? I don't have to justify why I'm here," she said, becoming defensive.

"No, I was just curious, it's one of my more self-destructive traits," he said, mentally rolling his eyes.

"So I've gathered. You heroic types always seem to have many self-destructive traits, which only seem to cause you more inner turmoil. Why bother? Just accept who you are and have done with it, else you'll spend your entire life wishing to become someone you never will be."

"Are you always this philosophical at this time of the morning."

"No," she mused. "Must be the company," she said with a raised eyebrow. "It's having a bad effect on me."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

It was early the next morning when Draco and Ginny left the B & B, hardly heartbroken to leave it behind. The portkey was about three miles away, and both were anxious to reach it and put some distance between them and Voldemort's men. Ginny was feeling better after a decent night's sleep, though the memory of the previous night and how close she had been to danger was still fresh in her mind. So too, was the memory of Draco, asking her if she was ok while taking her face in his hands. Oh, things were complicated, but then, weren't they always?

Draco had been mostly quiet all morning; something was obviously pre-occupying his thoughts. However, Ginny knew better than to inquire what it was. Even if she had asked, she was uncertain as to whether he could give her an answer or not. Predominately in his mind was the journey and their safety. He had to think at least two moves ahead if they had any hope of surviving. The portkey would take them to Liverpool, where they would stay with a friend for a day, maybe two. From there they would take another portkey to Reading, then they would travel to London. After that, well, he was just going to have to improvise.

It would be good to be somewhere he knew, somewhere he trusted. At least they would be able to rest easy for one night, though he was sure neither of them would. He looked over his shoulder at Ginny who looked much the better for a decent night's sleep, though was still looking somewhat world-weary. It didn't dim her eyes though; one thing that seemed to go on sparkling when she couldn't were her eyes. She was looking determined, pushing herself onwards though her feet hurt and her mind was still a little clouded.

"Not far now," he said back to her.

"You said that an hour ago," she said through gritted teeth.

"Not giving up already are we Weasley?" he asked, stopping, as the usual smirk appeared.

"One thing you'll learn about me Malfoy; I never give up, no matter what. So if you're expecting me to give in that easily, you'll be waiting a long time," she said, her eyes now glinting with the threat of a challenge. She'd carry on to her dying breath to prove him wrong.

"Oh I believe you," he said, smirking down at her, which, given that he was nearly a head taller than her, wasn't difficult.

"Let's just get on shall we? I really want to put as much distance between them and us as possible, especially after last night," she finished quietly.

"Well you won't have to wait long. See that hill?" she nodded. "Over that is the first portkey; we'll be in Liverpool in about an hour."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

"About half an hour more and I reckon we'll have them," said Harry, looking down at the bracelet, which was now a vibrant crimson. They wouldn't have had a clue without the locater spell.

"Thank the heavens, I'm about ready to die," said Ron, his voice hoarse and his eyes feeling as though someone had stuck pins in them.

"Aw is the little Weasel feeling a bit tired?" asked Blaise with mock-sympathy.

"Oh like you aren't," he shot back testily.

"Me? Hell, I'm as fresh as a daisy!" she said with a fake 'chipper' smile. Well, maybe not quite a daisy, but she was fairing better than the two thirds of the Dream Team, who looked ready to collapse. Still, they were determined; she'd give them that. They had been the ones to suggest carrying on through the night and going without sleep, and Potter had been the one to think of using a locator spell. She hated to admit it, but she didn't think she'd be doing too well without them.

It had been a spur of the moment decision to go with them. She had known they were up to something; that was more than obvious; but it had been a last minute thing to decide to join them. Well, how else was she to find Draco? Anyway she was with them now, and if Potter was right, they'd be with Draco and the youngest Weasley soon enough. She just hoped soon enough was good enough.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Ginny was very, very pleased to see that Draco had not been lying when he said it hadn't been far. It had taken them about fifteen minutes and the pace hadn't been excruciatingly fast. They reached the top of the hill and walked a quarter of the way down, when Draco indicated that they were to stop. He nodded to an empty coke can in front of them, which Ginny assumed was the portkey.

"Oh very inventive," she said half-heartedly, she was too tired too really make much of an effort with the insults.

"Does it matter as long as it gets us there?" her only response was to roll her eyes. "On the count of three then, one, two….."

"You're not going anywhere!" came a voice from behind them, making Ginny jump nervously. She slowly turned around, a cold dread seeping into the pit of her stomach. She was expecting a robed Deatheater, waiting to attack and take her to Voldemort, what she saw was much worse…

Her brother.

"What the hell are you doing here!" she asked in amazement, her fear subsiding.

"I was about to ask _you_ the same question, and with that piece of scum as well!" said Ron, gesturing violently to Draco as Blaise and Harry came up behind him.

"Oh I don't believe this," said Draco, agitatedly. "Well why don't we just invite everyone along? And what do you think you're doing with these two idiots?" he asked Blaise, casting a disgusted look at Ron and Harry.

"Oh for Merlin's sake!" came Ginny's voice as she stepped in between the three boys and Blaise. "This isn't going to get us anywhere! Now, why don't you all stop behaving like children and calm down so we can discuss this rationally!" she said, her eyes meeting with every other pair, lastly Draco's, where she lingered slightly longer, trying to warn him not to start anything. "That's better," she said when a silence had fallen. "Now, I think a couple of explanations are in order."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

They all sat in a small café not far from where the portkey was so they could still keep an eye on it. Ginny, Draco and Blaise one side of the table, Ron and Harry on the other. It had, of course, been Ron's idea to go somewhere with food, as after a day or two without proper nourishment, he was beginning to feel the effects. He was glaring across at the blonde Slytherin through the whole of Ginny's explanation of the situation and the reasons why they had to disappear.

"Ok, I understand why you had to run away and everything that's going on, but why, in the name of all that is good, did you have to run away with that excuse for a human being!" he asked, his eyes flashing.

"This excuse for a human being is the only thing stopping Voldemort from getting his hands on your little sister," replied Draco smoothly.

"Dumbledore must have really lost it this time! Of all people to choose to protect you!"

Ginny rolled her eyes and looked over to Harry who hadn't yet said a word. He was looking thoughtful, as if he was scrutinising Draco rather than merely thinking of dismembering him. Sensing he was being watched, his eyes flickered to meet Ginny's and he gave her a small smile.

"Look, we really are wasting time here with you, so if you'll excuse us, we'll be on our way," said Draco, going to get up.

"Just a minute! You don't really think that after coming all this way we're just going to settle for a nice chat then sod off do you!"

"Then what exactly did you want Weasley?" he asked, Ginny sensing his anger was beginning to rise.

"We're coming with you," he answered, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Like hell you are! There's no way in this world or any other you're coming with us!"

"Just how do you expect to stop us?" came Blaise's cool, crisp voice, her eyes turning to Draco, challenging him to oppose her. "Weasley's right, we haven't come all this way for nothing."

"Blaise," began Draco, his tone instantly calmer. "Five people are far more conspicuous than two, and they move slower."

"There's more protection with five," she countered. "More people to keep a look out, more people to sleep in shifts. It makes sense Draco. You know me, you know I'm not just going to let you go off, and by the look of those two," she said, indicating Harry and Ron, "They won't either."

Draco paused and looked over to Ginny who shrugged her shoulders, handing the decision over to him. Could he really cope with Potter and Weasel continually breathing down his neck and pushing his sanity to the brink? Judging by the looks on their faces, he didn't have much choice.

"Fine, but I'm only Ginny's protector, don't think I'm looking out for either of you two!" he said, glaring at Harry and Ron.

"I think we can look after ourselves Malfoy," said Harry, getting up and walking in front of him. "But we'll be sure to let you know if we can't."

"You might have said something before you left," said Blaise, as she and Draco walked behind the other three.

"I couldn't, we just had to get out as soon as possible, we would have put ourselves and others in danger if we'd have told anyone. I can't believe you managed to track us down. Why did you come?"

"I was worried," she said simply. "After everything that's gone on in the past, everything you've done for me, I don't know, I suppose I feel I owe you."

"Don't talk nonsense, you owe me nothing. I don't know whether to be glad or annoyed you're here. Now I have two insane females to keep safe!" he said, looking over at Ginny, who appeared to be trying to convince her brother she hadn't been abducted by the 'slimy Slytherin git'.

"Who would have thought, you of all people, protecting a Weasley," said Blaise, looking highly amused.

"Trust me Zabini, there's no need to point out the irony!"

"So how's it been?" she asked.

"Well, pushing aside the fact I've saved her life twice since we left, not too bad."

"Not too bad? Draco Malfoy is saying that spending time alone with a Weasley hasn't been 'too bad'! I think I'm in a state of shock," she said, her eyebrows raised.

"Oh well let's discuss your time with Potter; how's that been?" he asked, annoyed at her teasing.

"Oh you know, not too bad." She said, sauntering off in front of him, an evil smile on her lips.

"Now I'm in bloody shock."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

They reached the portkey and managed to use it without hassle, though Ginny had to place herself between her brother and Draco to stop any injuries from occurring. They were still glaring daggers at each other and Ginny feared they would soon come to blows.

They arrived in Liverpool, slightly dizzy from the use of the portkey, but thankfully still in one piece. Draco had a friend who lived down by the docks, so all they needed to do was to get to his place. The use of the portkey meant they had put some distance between themselves and the Deatheaters, but they couldn't afford to think that automatically put them out of harm's way. Voldemort's men were everywhere.

Everyone had been rather quiet, which at that point suited both Draco and Ginny fine. Ginny couldn't decide whether she was pleased or angry that Harry and Ron had come after her. The big brother routine was getting a little old now, but it was nice to know they cared. Blaise had been a bit of a shock though. She'd always known Blaise was in with Draco and the rest of the top Slytherins, but she didn't think Slytherins actually cared for one another, for anyone for that matter. Well, this whole experience was turning her world upside down; one more revelation wasn't going to do much.

She and Draco were walking ahead of the others, and every now and then she would glance up at him. She knew he'd had even less sleep than her, yet he still managed to looked alert and sharp. His grey eyes seemed to see everything and he was constantly on the look out for anything or anyone that could pose a threat to them. She found herself surprisingly grateful he was the one protecting her.

"I know I'm irresistible, but you don't have to stare," he said, turning to look at her.

"You wish," she said with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh come on, admit it, you're just thinking how much you'd love to have me."

"Wow, you read my mind," she said, rolling her eyes.

"It's a universal thing, women can't resist me."

"What have you been smoking? You're seriously delusional you know that?"

"Oh sooner or later you'll give in, everyone does."

"Don't be expecting that anytime soon."

"It's just a matter of time Weasley, you'll see."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Cithara: Well, the two paths meet.

Draco: You love stating the obvious don't you?

Cithara: Who asked for your opinion?

Draco: No need to get narky.

Ginny: Oh she's been in a bad mood all day.

Cithara: Wouldn't _you_ be if you had to be around you lot all day!

Draco: Personally I'd jump at the chance to be alone with me all day.

Ginny: You're impossible.

Draco: It's why you love me.

Ginny: Dream on.

Cithara: Oh for goodness sake! Will you two give it a rest for once! You're driving me crazy! Just sit in the corner for a bit and be quiet while I speak to the reviewers. Now, you lovely people, if you'd like to make me feel better all you have to do is the click the little button that says 'go', and type some nice words. Go on. You know you want to…


	7. Changes

Hello again one and all, I'm so sorry that I've taken so long with getting this out, but I've been in the middle of my AS exams (waste of bloody time if you ask me!) and my internet decided it would helpfully stop working for about a week and a half, don't you just love technology! Also, this is unbeta-ed as my beta hasn't been able to reply, (don't worry if your reading this Ana, I'm sure you have your reasons!) so please allow for any mistakes.

Review responses, which are still, sad to say, very much lacking, so if you feel like recommending this story to anyone please go right ahead:

**light barrer: **Thanks for the review and for being nice!

**Helldarkangel1:** I'm so pleased you like it so much! There will be much fun ahead with Harry and Ron tagging along I promise you!

**Eva Angel:** Ah my enthusiastic reviewer, I know what you mean about jumping Draco, but Ginny will just have to be patient!

**sweetmly117: **Glad you like and yes, eventually all will revealed about Blaise and Draco's relationship.

**wingedcinner: **Thanks for your comments, I am endeavouring to keep the story going at a reasonable pace!

Also, I'll be posting a new fic soon which promises to be quite different from this one, though never fear! I'm not abandoning this one just yet! Check it out if you have time!

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It took them until midday to reach the docks and Draco took them to a set of apartments hidden away out of sight. They stood outside, waiting for a response to the buzzer amidst mutterings from Rom about whether or not they could really trust anyone associated with Draco.

"If you don't like it Weasley, you can sleep outside, let the Deatheaters take care of you."

"Yeah?" came a voice over the intercom.

"Hey Connor it's me; listen I have a few….friends with me," he said, practically having to force the word out. "And we need a place to crash, want to oblige?"

"Do I have a choice? Come on up," he said, the door clicking open.

They walked up through the narrow staircase and down to the end of the corridor where the door was ajar, inviting them in. Draco entered first, the others close behind. It was a fair sized apartment, quite modern and obviously occupied by a guy. They walked through to the living room where a man of about twenty was leaning against a high windowsill, waiting for them. He was similar in looks to Harry with his tousled black hair and height, but his eyes were a rich hazel and he was darker than Harry. He grinned on seeing Draco, then even more so upon seeing the two very attractive females that walked in behind him.

"Now what have you got yourself into?" he asked, shifting himself upright.

"Don't ask," said Draco wearily. "You're sure this is ok?"

"Stay as long as you want, as long as you don't mind crashing on the floor."

Draco assured him it wouldn't be a problem and Connor invited them all to make themselves at home in the living room while he and Draco discussed a few things in the kitchen. After the initial catch-up conversation, Draco briefly explained the situation with Ginny and recounted the events of the last few days.

"Poor you," said Connor sarcastically, looking over at Ginny who was laughing at something Harry had said.

"Oh please, if you'd had the week I'd had you wouldn't be thinking about how hot she was," said Draco with a yawn.

"So you agree she's hot?" asked Connor with a wicked smile.

"I did not say that!" said Draco quickly, a horrified look on his face.

"Right, course not," said Connor, looking somewhat amused. "It must be terrible having to be with her 24/7." He said with mock-sympathy.

"You have no idea," Draco growled.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

It was one in the morning and Harry was sitting it one of the armchairs in Connor's living room, staring up out of the window. The others were asleep; Draco in the chair opposite, Blaise leaning against it and Ron and Ginny next to each other on the floor. He'd tried to sleep, but his eyes wouldn't stay closed, so he'd given up the fight.

He was exhausted, mind and body, but what was new? He was a little more settled now he knew Ginny was ok and unharmed, the news she had disappeared from Hogwarts had worried him as well as her brother. She meant a lot to him, she might as well have been his sister for all the love he felt for her, and to think of her in danger set his heart beating at an uncomfortable pace. When Ron had determined to find her, Harry hadn't needed to think twice about joining him.

Finding who her protector was had been another matter. Draco Malfoy – of all people! How on earth were they meant to trust him? How on earth were they meant to stand being in his company? In actual fact, Harry had been slightly hurt that he hadn't himself been chosen to keep Ginny safe; he knew Ginny better, he was the one who cared about her, and he was the one who wasn't the son of a known Deatheater! It didn't make sense, he hoped Dumbledore had a strong basis upon which to place his trust of Draco. Well, now there were three people looking out for Ginny, and Harry wasn't going to let her out of his sight, he'd do better than he had in her first year.

"Merlin Potter get some sleep!" came Blaise's voice. He shook himself out his reverie and found she was looking up at him from her spot by Draco's armchair. Her hair was dishevelled and hung about her face messily, but her eyes were sharp and focused as ever.

"Can't," he replied. "Thinking too much."

"Weren't you ever warned about that?" she asked with a smirk not too dissimilar to the one Draco sported.

"Oh yes, but I'm not one to listen to listen to advice," he replied.

"I suggest that's what usually gets you into trouble," she said, getting up and crossing the room so she stood by the window he had previously been looking out of.

"Most probably. What are you doing awake anyway?" he asked, looking up at her.

"Same reason as you I suppose," she admitted with a sigh, wrapping the blanket she had tighter around her shoulders to fend off the cold. "He isn't as bad as you think," she said quietly, her eyes flickering to Draco's sleeping form.

"Oh no, he's a bundle of joy."

"I'm serious Potter," she said, her voice taking a grave tone as she moved from the window to sit on the arm of his chair. "I know what he's like, I know the image he puts out there, but you don't know him, you don't see what I do, few do. Just don't be so quick to write him off as a bad guy," she finished quietly.

"What is it with you and him? What makes you see him differently to other people?" Harry asked, his brow furrowed with curiosity.

"It's just something in my past that I don't really talk about these days. All you have to know is that deep down he's a good guy, and probably the best person to protect the little Weasley," she said, tucking a strand of her straight black hair behind her ear. "Look I don't expect you to take my word for it, but just don't think of him so harshly, he only behaves the way he does to hide who he really is."

Silence fell but Blaise remained on the arm of Harry's chair, wrapped in the blanket and surveying the others. Harry looked up at the girl sitting next to him; she was a bit of a mystery, he mused. But then, he hardly knew her, in their seven years at Hogwarts only a few words had passed between them, and they had all been insulting or spoken with disgust. The only reason he could find for this was the difference in houses; it suddenly seemed faintly ridiculous to let such a simple thing divide people.

"Potter stop ogling me," said Blaise, giving him a half-hearted nudge with her elbow. "I know I'm irresistible but you really should control yourself."

Wow, she really knew how to spoil a moment.

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They all woke the next morning feeling much better for having spent the night in safety and comfort. The girls were put in almost giddy moods after having had showers and emerging looking a whole lot more improved with now glowing skin and much healthier looking hair. It was amazing how being clean could change your entire disposition, Ginny mused as she sat in one of the armchairs, towelling her hair dry.

Blaise, Harry and Ron had decided they would go into the town centre to get a few more supplies and to check a few things out. If anything or anyone looked suspicious, then they would know they needed to leave Liverpool as soon as they could. Connor had been up and out since five, apparently he worked for the Ministry in some way or another and kept rather unsociable hours due to his job. So now it was just Ginny and Draco, as it had been from the start.

He was in the kitchen, making breakfast and for the first time since they had left Hogwarts, Ginny thought he'd actually managed to sleep the previous night. She knew she had; although at one point she had been startled awake by a dream, though it was thankfully nothing to do with Tom or the events of her first year, and she had looked up to find Harry and Blaise talking. What about she couldn't really hear as their tones were hushed, but it certainly didn't look like either one had much objection to the conversation taking place.

Draco strolled in to the living room with his newly made cereal, his hair still wet from the shower, and took the sofa opposite Ginny, not looking across at her. They hadn't really spoken much since the arrival of her brother, Harry and Blaise, but then Ginny wasn't exactly missing the oh-so thrilling insults and snipes she got from him, nor the condescending smirks and sneers. Maybe Draco was best when he was silent, she thought with a small smile.

"What are you smiling at Weasley?" came the voice of the object of her thoughts.

"Oh nothing in particular," she said, continuing to smile, and moving over to sit next to him on the sofa, mainly just to annoy him. "I don't see why couldn't have gone with the others, we could have done with getting out."

"It's too dangerous, no one can know we're here, it's bad enough golden boy out and about, but we can't risk anyone seeing you."

Ginny sighed resignedly, she was fed up of being cooped up and smothered. She needed just a few moments to be free, to do whatever she wanted and not worry about looking over her shoulder to see whether the Big Nasty was waiting behind her. She knew it was unrealistic, she'd been looking her whole life, but it would have been nice to have had just an hour at least, even if it was to go shopping for the bare essentials. But she knew Draco was right, and after what had happened at the abbey and the B & B, she wasn't too prepared to take risks.

"Look, when we get to Reading or London, we'll see, but for now, you're just going to have to stay hidden," he said, receiving a nod. "After the other night I wouldn't have thought you were willing to risk it anyway."

"I've been meaning to thank you for that," she said quietly.

"You already did, and I've already told you there's no need. I'm your protector, if I hadn't have done it I wouldn't be much good at my job. And now you've got Big Brother and Golden Boy looking out for you I'm sure you won't have to thank me again," he said getting up to go.

"Well I don't feel half as safe with them as I do with you!" she blurted out, biting her lip after she'd said it. She hadn't really wanted him to know that. He turned around to face her, his eyebrows twisted into a frown.

"Why?" he asked simply, quietly.

"I don't know," she said lamely, still kicking herself for divulging this particular information to him. "I just do. I mean so far you've saved my life twice, that has to count for something, and knowing you're the one protecting me just makes me feel that no one can hurt me. I don't know why, but I trust you," she finished, her eyes going to the floor.

He moved across the room to where she was standing and raised her chin with his hand, their eyes meeting. He brought his lips down to hers to meet in a brief, painfully brief kiss that sent Ginny's mind and senses reeling. Then just as abruptly as it had started, he broke it off and looked at her with such intensity all she could do was stare into those grey orbs. "I'm not one of the good guys Ginny," he whispered, using her name directly for the first time. "You can trust me to take care of you, but that's about as far as you can trust me, I don't want to end up hurting you."

"Who says you will?" she asked, pulling away. "And it's up to me who I trust and how much, and I say I trust you."

"Then I say you're a fool. Don't say I didn't warn you," he said softly, looking away from her.

"I don't understand you," she said faintly, watching him as he turned away.

"You're not meant to. Stick with Potter, he won't destroy you," he said cryptically, walking away from her into Connor's room, he couldn't stay with her, he couldn't look at her.

He sat down slowly on the edge of Connor's bed, staring at his reflection in the mirror opposite. He was pale, paler than usual, and his hair was completely dishevelled but what did he care? Now was not the time for vanity. Why had he kissed her? Why had he been so completely stupid? He shook his head, thoroughly disgusted with himself, not something he felt too often, and he wasn't thrilled to be feeling it now.

She had said she trusted him – why? People didn't trust him; he wasn't exactly associated with truth and honour, quite the opposite in fact. Ok he'd saved her life, but she wasn't saying she trusted him to protect her, she was saying she trusted him full stop. Could she really do that? Could he let her? He was protecting her from Voldemort, but maybe what he really needed to protect her from was himself.

Meanwhile Ginny was left alone in the living room, sitting curled up in the armchair, frowning into the distance, her eyes unfocused. Her mind was working in overdrive; she had just been kissed by Draco Malfoy; that wasn't exactly a regular occurrence. Then he'd warned her away, what the hell was he playing at? Did he enjoy messing with her head? And then there was the obscure advice to "Stick with Potter" who wouldn't "destroy" her, what was that all about?

Well, she'd learnt the hard way not to let anyone tell her what to do, and she wasn't about to start doing that again, so she didn't care what he said, she'd do what she damn well pleased, and if she did end up getting hurt, she had only herself to blame. She didn't know what was happening, but she wasn't one to just back away from something new, something that could possibly change everything. He had no right to tell her what she should or shouldn't do or what she should or shouldn't feel, no one had that right, no one would ever have that right over her again.

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It was to a rather subdued atmosphere that Ron, Harry and Blaise returned to and sensing discussion would not be the best route to take, they didn't press the matter. Connor had let Draco know he wouldn't be returning home that night, so they had free run of the place. Blaise had been eager to go out, but was dissuaded by the others, so they were sitting in the living room, a restrained mood present and the sense that something had taken place that neither Draco nor Ginny was willing to discuss.

"Well we have to eat," said Ron, receiving withering looks from the other four. "Well we do!" he protested. "I don't know what this silence is all about, and why everyone's suddenly decided that staring at the floor is so interesting, but it's really starting to piss me off!"

"Oh for Merlin's sake Weasley don't go into conniptions!" said Draco, actually rather pleased that someone had done something to break the tense silence.

"I'll go make something," said Ginny, getting up and moving into the kitchen, glad to have something to distract her. She deliberately avoided any eye contact with Draco. "Give it a day or two and it'll be back to insults and snipes," she thought hopefully. She couldn't believe she was actually missing the old behaviour.

"I think I'll give her a hand," said Blaise, getting up and following Ginny into the kitchen, much to the three boys' surprise, who also suddenly realised they had been left alone with each other without the buffer of the girls.

"We bought some stuff today, not very exciting, but it'll do," said Blaise, leaning against the door and indicating the fridge.

"I don't really need any help," said Ginny, very much wanting her own company at that point, and certainly not wanting the company of a Slytherin girl she only knew from flying insults.

"I don't care, if you think I'm staying in there with that atmosphere you must be insane."

"It's not much better in here," Ginny warned.

"I'll take what I can get."

Deciding protest would be a futile effort on her part, Ginny nodded and handed Blaise the contents of the fridge, which as Blaise had warned were not very interesting, but would serve to feed five people. Having something to focus on made Ginny feel much better; as she prepared the food she could push everything with Tom, and now everything with Draco, to the back of her mind and keep it there so it couldn't drive her insane.

Blaise was also thankful to have a task to occupy her mind. Her day had been fairly uneventful, but the return 'home' and proved to everyone that Draco and Ginny's day hadn't been. She'd been watching Draco all evening; he was thinking about something, and not just protecting the little Weasley, something was playing on his thoughts and driving him to distraction, but she couldn't tell what. She knew better than to ask as well, it was one thing to recognise what Draco was feeling, it was another to acknowledge that you knew.

"So how did you manage to get roped into all this?" Ginny asked, tiring of the silence, she'd been putting up with silence all day. Even talking to the detached Slytherin was better than that.

"I'm an incredibly curious person, and I wanted to find Draco," said the tall girl, leaning against the kitchen sideboard and looking at Ginny, a hand on her hip.

"Is there…something between you?" Ginny asked tentatively.

"Why is everyone so interested in me and Draco all of sudden! First Potter, now you, for Merlin's sake, he's just a friend, I know it's somewhat unusual for Slytherins to have friends, but it does happen you know. Anyway, why would you care if there _was_ something between us?" Blaise asked, her eyes narrowing.

"I don't, I was just making conversation," said Ginny with a shrug, hell she was welcome to the guy!

"Since when do the good little Gryffs make conversation with the big bad Slytherins?"

"I was bored, trust me it's only out of necessity I'm talking to you," she said, rolling her eyes. She had had just about enough of arrogant, cocky, over-assured Slytherins, they all managed to get right up her nose!

"That's what I like to see – harmony in the kitchen," said Harry, leaning against the doorframe. His amused expression soon faded when he saw the glares the girls were shooting in his direction. "You know you two have got more in common than you think, you can both send a guy running from the room with those looks!"

"Did you want something?" Ginny asked 'sweetly'. "If not I suggest you leave," she said, turning back to the food.

"Well I was going to inquire as to how the food was coming on, but I don't think I'll bother. Merlin, females, they're so bloody hormonal," he muttered, turning away. Ginny was just preparing to throw something at him, but Blaise got there first, hitting him square on the head with a leek. Ginny burst out laughing at his stunned expression when he turned round and had to steady herself on the kitchen worktop to keep from falling over.

"Any more comments like that Potter and you won't get off so lightly," Blaise said smoothly, her arms folded and an eyebrow raised.

"Your face!" Ginny managed to get out, clutching her sides as she tried, to no avail, to stop giggling.

"I'm glad you find it so funny!" said Harry testily, rubbing the back of his head.

"Slytherin or no, you throw one mean leek!" sniggered Ginny, clapping Blaise on the shoulder, causing Harry to frown even more. "What was it you were just saying about us being hormonal? Don't be so bloody moody you grumpy git!" she said, looping her arms round his neck, still trying to calm herself down.

"Well let's throw a leek or two at your head and we'll see how you feel about it!" he said, a grin making its way onto his face as he looked down at her evilly. She knew what he was going to do before he did it and she tried to make a run for it to the living room, but he caught her and they both landed in the chair, him tickling her mercilessly.

"No! Stop, I apologise, I apologise!" she shrieked amid bursts of uncontrollable laughter.

"I didn't quite hear that," he said innocently, not consenting to let her go.

"Merlin, would you two get a room!" came Draco's voice from the other side of the room as he looked at them with a bored expression.

"What? Can't stand to see people have fun?" Harry asked as he released Ginny, who was wiping the tears of laughter from her face. Draco didn't bother responding, just rolled his eyes at the pair of them and went back to studying the map that was spread across his lap.

Ginny sighed and went back to kitchen, Blaise joining her on her way. It had felt so good to laugh, to just have the thoughts of the moment in her head and the only worry of how to make Harry stop. She had felt like a kid again, just enjoying the company of friends and indulging in childish pleasure, laughing until it hurt. It was nice to feel that free, it was something she didn't get to experience very often and it felt good. But then of course the wonderful Malfoy had to go and spoil everything; he just wasn't happy unless he and everyone else were miserable.

"Never mind me and Draco, what about you and Potter?" asked Blaise, eyeing her strangely.

"What _about_ me and Harry?"

"Well you looked pretty cosy just then."

"Not jealous Zabini?" asked Ginny teasingly.

"As if!" the Slytherin shot back.

"Well, don't worry, he's all yours, the only way I can possibly think of Harry these days is as a brother."

"I seem to remember a time when you hung off every word he said, even sent him a singing……."

"Yes, well we all have our little crushes don't we?" said Ginny, cutting her off, the less she was reminded of her earlier embarrassing escapades, the better. "Like I said, he's like a brother." And he was, she loved him in the same way she loved Ron and the rest of her brothers. He was kind, funny and was always looking out for her, but that was where it ended. "You're welcome to him," she said.

"What the hell makes you think I want Potter? Maybe if I was desperate, but I don't think so…."

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks," said Ginny, just wanting to get a rise out of her, enjoying the teasing and for once being the one doing it rather than being on the receiving end.

"You're insane," said Blaise with a look of disgust, leaving the room and going to sit as far away from Harry as was physically possible in the space they were in.

Ginny simply smiled to herself, sometimes, it was just too easy.

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Cithara: It's getting going now, well hopefully!

Draco: Ok so now what? Potter and Blaise are going to get it on?

Cithara: You'll see all in good time my friend.

Draco: Well if Potter's getting some action I better had too!

Ginny: Um I get a say in that!

Draco: Be quiet honey, the grown ups are talking.

Ginny: Stuff it you pompous git!

Cithara: Children, children! Let's be nice shall we? Now you two pick up the dummies you've just thrown out of your prams while I talk to the nice readers! Now then, if you'd be kind enough to review, I'll reward you with a nice shiny penny. (Well I probably won't, but I'll be very grateful!) Later days xXx


	8. Ginny'

Hello my lovely readers, here I am, regular with my updates! If you get the chance, please check out my latest fic "BitterSweet Pain", which promises to be rather different from this one, but hopefully will get some good feedback. I won't tell you the pairings, but there are going to be several relationships explored. I'd really appreciate it if you would give it a look over! ;-)

Ok, now for the review responses:

**Helldarkangel1:** I'm sure you're right about Draco and our little Miss Zabini! We'll have to see how they cope with it in the upcoming chapters! Thanks for your continued support!

**blizzardgirl:** Glad you like! I wish I could keep those bloody characters under control though::glares at the mad tribe that are, as usual, arguing: They're seriously giving me a nervous breakdown!

**Imnop:** As you asked, I've updated ASAP! Hope you like!

**AimeeK:** Good point about Hermione actually, to be honest I hadn't really given her much thought as she never features prominently in my fics. In my head she's going out with Ron, but I never actually managed to let all you readers know that! Thanks for bringing it to my attention, I'll see what I can do!

**wingedcinner:** That one makes me laugh too, especially the part when Blaise hits Harry with a leek! Bless, though he did deserve it! Hope you keep reading!

**stephanie:** Thank you so much for the lovely review and, as requested, here's the next instalment!

**PP Ruffie:** I _would_ give you a penny, but unfortunately I'm flat out broke! You'll just have to settle for the next chapter! ;-)

**Chris's-grl-I-wish:** Thank you very much for such an enthusiastic review, it really put a smile on my face! I wouldn't want to be responsible for the breakdown of your sanity, so here's the next chapter!

**amanda:** I'm glad you like it so much! I do try and balance the humour and angst because I think it's important to have both. The Ginny/Draco action will be complicated as both are having difficulties with their feelings, but there will be some ahead!

Ok, now there might appear to be a lot of life-saving going on in this chapter, but I felt it was necessary to show that the group dynamic was changing. Anyway without further ado, here's the next chappie……

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They stayed with Connor for a couple of days and then decided they couldn't risk staying in one place for much longer. It was hard to leave somewhere where they felt safe, but they were endangering themselves and Connor by staying. After thanking him for putting up with their invasion of his home, Draco left Connor with specific instructions to let them know somehow if questions were being asked or if there were any sightings of Voldemort's men.

The next part of the plan was to find the portkey that would take them to Reading. It was in Liverpool, but the other side of the city and Draco reckoned all they needed was a morning to reach it. The last couple of days had been a welcome relief as they hadn't needed to be on constant alert, but they knew only too well the dangers of letting their guards down.

Ginny was walking with her brother, it was the first chance she had had to really talk to him in the past few days as everyone had been too preoccupied with the goings on, and she had been far too busy evaluating the situation with Draco. It was nice to just be able to talk with Ron, like they used to when things were simpler. "Bloody hell Gin, we don't half get into some situations don't we?" he asked with a grin.

"You said it," She said, smiling up at the tall young man beside her. "You'd think we'd have learnt to cope better with them by now!"

"You're doing brilliantly," He said, slipping an arm round her shoulders. "I've never met anyone as strong as you are, I'm very proud of you," He finished quietly, a little embarrassed at letting her know how he really felt about her.

"Thanks, that means a lot." Sometimes big brothers weren't too bad, she reflected. He could be a pain in the backside when he came over all protective, but deep down she knew it was only because he cared, he wouldn't have come all this way to find her if he didn't. It was good to have a network of people to support you, to fall back on when times were tough, though she wasn't sure how much tougher they could get.

"He can't hurt you," Said Ron, repeating Draco's words the night she had woken abruptly from her nightmare. They were both wrong, he _could_ hurt her, he already had. Maybe this time would be different now she had people looking out for her, but what could they do against one of the most powerful wizards the wizarding world had ever seen? She merely nodded to his words, not really believing them, but hoping against everything they might be true. "Malfoy where exactly is this portkey?" Ron asked, looking back at the blonde who had said little all morning, apart from warning them to be on their guard at all times.

"Not too far, pace getting a bit much?" he replied with a smirk.

"Can't you ever just answer a question like a normal human being?" asked Ron impatiently.

"Can't you ever look like one?" Draco shot back.

"Oh for goodness sake stop bickering, anyone would think you were eight, not eighteen!" came Blaise's voice as she glared at Ron and Draco. "Listening to you two have it out yet again isn't helping anyone so grow up and get on with it!"

"Well said," Said Ginny, taking her turn to glare at Draco and her brother. "This isn't an ideal situation, for anyone," she stressed as she saw the looks on their faces. "But if we carry on this way we're practically handing ourselves to Voldemort. We're better united than divided so for goodness sake just get over it!" she stopped, realising her voice was becoming more high pitched. Pleased to see they looked sufficiently berated, she indicated to carry on walking and managed to fall into step with Blaise, leaving the three boys walking up ahead, glowering at each other. "I swear, travelling with children would be easier," She said, looking ahead at them.

"Too right," Blaise agreed. "I don't expect anyone to just get on and pretend like the past seven years haven't happened, but the least they could do is be civil, this whole thing would be a lot easier if they did. We're managing ok," She said in frustration.

"Yes, but we don't have the legendary male pride to overcome, men just aren't designed to make life easier for themselves or those around them! I give up sometimes."

"Oh tell me about it! Guys sometimes don't have a clue, it's hard to believe a human being can be so dense!"

"They manage it though."

Suddenly realising they had found a common ground and were managing to discuss it perfectly civilly, even amicably; they paused for a moment, each assessing the shift in the relationship. Maybe it was because they were two girls sticking together, or maybe they'd realised they were more similar than they had originally thought. Whatever the reason, the barriers were slowly beginning to come down and Ginny considered that it might be a welcome relief to have another girl to relate to throughout this whole experience.

"Look I don't have anything against you, you're just a good little Gryff, and I'm a big bad Slytherin, we're from two different worlds, worlds that divide people, look at them," She said indicating the boys. "I don't think they'll ever learn to get on, sometimes the separations are too big."

"But they can be overcome," Ginny insisted.

"Only in very rare circumstances."

"And what kind of circumstances would you call these exactly?" Ginny asked with a laugh. "I mean, talk about being thrown in together!"

"Maybe, but the gulf between Slytherin and Gryffindor is colossal, it would take something special to overcome it."

They carried on walking, Ginny mulling over Blaise's words. Maybe she was right, maybe the houses were just too separate to produce good relationships, especially Slytherin and Gryffindor. They were so completely different in every respect and some sort of ancient pride and hatred stopped them from associating. Pride was one of the most damaging things humans harboured, it ruined so many opportunities, stopped so many apologies from being made and hindered many true feelings from being expressed. It was a ridiculous thing and yet so many people indulged in it. If people could only overcome that fatal flaw, they wouldn't miss out on so many of the things that made life worth living.

Perhaps she was damning the human race too much. It had been known for the houses to merge, but in all her time at Hogwarts she had never heard of a Slytherin or a Gryffindor making something, a friendship, a relationship, anything, it just didn't happen. But then here she was having a perfectly affable conversation with Blaise Zabini, someone she'd barely even talked to all her time at Hogwarts except the times Harry and Draco had begun another slanging match and she and Blaise had been present, rooting for their respective sides. Maybe it _did_ take rare or unusual circumstances to bring people together, to make them really see the person they thought they knew.

She had thought she knew Draco, but she was starting to be proved wrong. In her six years at Hogwarts she had thought of him as an arrogant, proud, cruel, spoilt, unfeeling young man. Now though, she was beginning to see what lay beneath; a strong, troubled, intelligent person who seemed to be fighting a continuous battle with both with himself and with others. He was incredibly complicated and Ginny was finding it difficult to try to understand him. However, the fact she wanted to understand him showed that something had changed, a couple of weeks ago she wouldn't have cared less and would have considered it a waste of time and energy. She was so confused now she wasn't sure what she was feeling; she didn't feel the way she did when the experience had first started, of that she was sure, but what that meant she didn't know.

"Shit we've been followed!" came the sudden announcement from Draco up ahead, shocking Ginny out of her thoughts. She looked round and saw Draco was right; coming up behind them were about six Deatheaters, wands at the ready.

"How far are we from the portkey?" she asked, panicked as they all broke into a sprint.

"It's down that alleyway," Draco shouted back, indicating an alleyway up ahead of them. "I don't know if we can make it!"

"We'll make it," Said Harry determinedly. "Duck!" he cried as he heard one of the Deatheaters fire off the Cruciatius Curse. He saw that no matter what Blaise did, she wasn't going to avoid it and so, seeing no other alternative, ran into her, bringing them both crashing to the ground. Taking a moment to let the shock of the fall register, Blaise then realised Harry had landed right on top of her, their faces barely inches apart and their breathing heavy. "Haven't I told you once before to keep your eyes open?" he whispered.

"I guess I should start listening to your advice," She replied with a small smile.

"When you two have quite finished!" came Draco's voice. They looked over to find him glaring at them as he, Ginny and Ron were almost by the alleyway. Shaking himself back to his senses, Harry jumped up, helping Blaise up next to him and they started running again.

Draco would have rolled his eyes if he'd have had time to do so, honestly, couldn't they find a better time to let their hormones get out of check! The Deatheaters were dangerously close now and shooting off hexes and curses intermittently, each one getting nearer and nearer. "Ginny watch out!" he yelled as he pulled her away from an Unforgivable just in time. He kept his arm tightly round her shoulders as they continued to run, the alleyway thankfully getting nearer. She winced with as she felt a shooting pain run through her body. "Are you ok?" he asked, trying to catch his breath.

"I think so, it must have just been a stitch or something," She said, trying to shake the pain away.

They darted down into the alleyway, Ron close behind, then Blaise and Harry practically fell in, almost completely out of breath.

"Shit I don't know where they came from, we've been so careful." Said Draco, looking out from behind the wall of alleyway at the Deatheaters making their way towards them.

"Malfoy get down!" said Harry, yanking him down, just as an Unforgivable passed over their heads, missing by about half a centimetre. "What was it you said about not looking after us?" asked Harry, letting go of Draco's arm, attempting to avoid the expressions of sheer surprise he knew the others were wearing as they looked at him. Well what did they expect him to do? Leave Draco do be killed?

"I can manage," Said Draco gruffly, also avoiding the looks of the others. "Come on, the portkey's just over here." He said, suddenly remembering the need for urgency. They followed him to the end of the alley and just as all their fingers closed around the raggedy old magazine, they saw all six Deatheaters crowd into the alleyway. Ginny had never felt such relief as she did when she felt the familiar tug and their surroundings disappeared completely from around them.

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"Well thank Merlin for that," Sighed Ron as they appeared in Reading, thankfully all in one piece and unharmed. "Steady on there, you ok?" he asked his sister as she fell against him slightly.

"Hm? Oh yeah, fine, just a bit dizzy from the portkey I think. I'm ok, really," She assured him, propping herself upright and taking a few deep breaths to steady herself.

They'd come out just behind the station, which was thankfully not very busy, apart from the odd person, but by the looks of them, they wouldn't have been too bothered by a group people appearing as if from nowhere. They continued to walk to the centre of Reading, all rather silent as they were individually mulling over what had just happened. Harry was especially thoughtful; a moment ago he had saved the lives of two Slytherins, one of those being Draco Malfoy, talk about a turn about in events!

He glanced across at Blaise who didn't seem at all shaken by the recent events and was looking extremely composed, enjoying the attention she was getting from a variety of muggle boys. He had acted on impulse when he had pulled her out of harm's way; something in his head had just screamed at him to make sure she was ok, and it wasn't his heroic, chivalrous nature either. As for Draco, well, he could only conclude that the goings on had muddled his brain in some way!

"We'll stay the night at a hotel a little outside of Reading in Caversham," Draco informed them.

"And just how are we going to get there? You're not suggesting we use muggle transportation?" asked Blaise, a look of disgust on her face.

"Oh live a little Zabini!" said Harry with a grin. "Just think of all the fun you can have on a rickety old bus."

"Exactly what are you suggesting?" she asked, pretending to be slightly affronted.

"Me? Nothing, nothing at all," Said Harry, as if he hadn't a clue what she could possibly talking about.

"When you two have quite finished," said Draco tensely. "I'm afraid we have no other alternative but to use a 'rickety old bus' as Potter puts it. As much as I detest the idea, we don't really have a choice."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

It was decided that as Harry was the only one who had any real experience of living in the muggle world, he would be the one to deal with getting the tickets as they stepped on the bus, which happened to be neither old nor rickety. He had to stifle a laugh as he saw Ron and Ginny's confused faces and Draco and Blaise's disgusted ones. For people who had seen more than their fair share of sights and experiences, it seemed somewhat amusing that not one of them had ever stepped foot on a bus before.

They sat at the back, Ginny next to the window to try and get some fresh to cool herself down. It wasn't exactly the warmest of days outside, but she felt as though someone had lit a fire inside her head. She leant her head against the cool glass of the window and closed her eyes, trying to concentrate on the rhythmic motion of the bus to take her mind off the way she felt.

"Are you sure you're alright?" came Draco's voice as he leant down to enquire after her.

"I'm just a little warm, need some fresh air," She said quietly, looking up him, noticing that he was becoming slightly blurry. "I think I might have a migraine or something coming on. I just need to lie down."

"Well we'll be there soon, just hold out a few minutes longer."

Ginny was thankful he hadn't been exaggerating when he had said it wouldn't be long, they were there within minutes. It was a place called Rainbow Lodge, not exactly the classiest of joints as Draco murmured, stepping through the doors. Ginny's head was pounding and her legs really weren't obeying the commands her brain was trying to send them. She was leaning on Draco for support, who had an arm tightly around her waist, keeping her upright.

"I'll take her, you three get your own room," Said Draco, before moving over to reception.

"You don't seriously expect us to leave you on your own with her?" Ron asked.

"That is exactly what I expect. She's obviously been hit by some sort of curse and she's needs looking after," He replied quietly but firmly.

"Then don't you think the people who care about her should be the ones to do that?"

"I'm not going to stand here arguing with you Weasley, I'm Ginny's protector, that requires me being with her at all times, including this one. Now you three go and get your own room and leave Ginny to me," He said, sweeping off to the reception and sorting out his and Ginny's room. "Come on Weasley, don't quit on me yet," He whispered, hoisting her up. She had reached the point where speech was far too much of an effort and her breathing was shallow and quick.

He thanked the woman on reception, hoping she hadn't paid too much attention to Ginny's feverish state. It was somewhat of an effort to manoeuvre himself and a now almost unconscious Ginny up the stairs, but he managed, shuffling into their room and setting her down onto the bed. "Come on, talk to me," He said, giving her a gentle shake.

She moved slightly as she felt Draco's cool, smooth hand cover her forehead. She felt wrong, that was the only way to describe it. Everything was off, her balance, her vision and she was burning up. "What's happening to me?" she managed to choke out.

"I think it's a curse, don't worry, I'll make sure you're ok," He said quietly.

She managed the smallest of smiles and said, "You'd better."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

"The cheek of him! As if I can't look after my own sister!" Ron raved as he, Harry and Blaise entered their room.

"Ron, just give it a rest." Sighed Harry, collapsing onto the bed, stretching out all his aches and pains. "He's the one who's meant to be looking after Ginny, he hasn't done too badly so far, let's just let him get on with it."

"You're not worried?" asked Ron incredulously.

"About Ginny yes. But I don't doubt his abilities to take care of her. We'd only be in the way if we tried to help, I mean seriously, what can we do?"

Apparently unable to answer this, Ron went to examine the bathroom, needing some space to calm himself down. Harry looked over to Blaise and rolled his eyes; yes he was worried about Ginny, of course he was, but he actually trusted that Draco could handle the situation and that he would take care of Ginny. As bizarre as the idea was, Harry was in fact starting to realise that perhaps Draco wasn't the lying, arrogant self-opinionated little shit he had taken him for.

"I saw a pub down the road, I'm going to go and check it out, The Moderation, something like that," Said Ron, emerging from the bathroom. "You two stay here, I need some space."

"I don't think it's a good idea to go on your own mate," Said Harry.

"I'll be fine, it's not me Voldemort's after."

"That's not the point……" but Ron was already out of the door before he could listen to anymore of Harry's protestations. "I hope he'll be ok, he's far too stubborn to listen to anything anyone tries to tell him," He said, turning to look at Blaise who was busy looking out of the window. "Are you ok?" he asked, moving over to her.

"Um, yeah, yeah I'm fine. Actually there was something I was thinking about," She said, turning round to face him. "I actually wanted to thank you for what happened earlier, you know, the part where you saved my life," She said awkwardly, her eyes going to the floor.

"You're welcome," He returned, just as awkwardly.

"Just, out of curiosity, why did you?"

"Well I…I mean I just…..it seemed like the right thing to do. No that's not what I mean," He said, not actually sure what he did mean. "I didn't want to see you hurt Blaise, I don't think I would have forgiven myself if you had have been."

"Oh," said Blaise simply, as if she had not been expecting that answer. "Thank you," She managed.

"You've already said that," Said Harry with a smile.

"Have I? Oh…" she broke off as she realised Harry was about to kiss her. Not so long ago, the idea would have repulsed her, but now she found herself leaning in until his lips met hers, his hands finding their way to her waist and settling there. She fell into the kiss, giving herself up to everything that was racing through her, revelling in the experience and in the way his hair felt as she wound it round her fingers. She'd had her share of men, but this was somehow different, the feel of his hands and the feel of his body pressed against hers were unlike anything she had known before. It was intimate and passionate at the same time. "Damn Potter, you don't half know how to mess with a girl's head," She said, smiling up at him, an expression she didn't wear too often.

"Maybe I should save your life more often, I quite like the thanks I get."

"Cheeky," She said as he leaned down again.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Draco had been at Ginny's bedside for three hours straight, and although he was tired, he refused to close his eyes. How could he when Ginny was so ill? He had been bathing her forehead with a mixture of soothing herbs that he knew to be effective, but it hadn't seemed to ease her suffering much.

He was working on a remedy that was supposed to bring down a fever, it usually worked, but given that he had tried almost everything he could think of, he wasn't holding out much hope. "Come in," he said tiredly as there was a knock on the door. Harry made his quiet entrance and moved round to the side of the bed, eyeing Ginny worriedly.

"Well?" he asked, his attention turning to Draco.

"I don't know what I can do. I've tried numerous things but the fever won't come down and she seems to be slipping further and further away," He replied, running a frustrated hand through his hair, on the brink of exhaustion.

"Here give me that," Said Harry, taking the bowl of whatever Draco what mixing from him. "You look about ready to drop dead, why don't you get some rest?"

"As if. Don't tell me you're worried about my health Potter?" asked Draco, finding room for his sarcasm despite his worn-out state.

"Well we'll all be in a pretty sorry state if we lose our guide. Besides, I wouldn't like to have your death on my conscience," Harry replied. "Seriously, why don't you get some sleep?"

"Because I want to make sure she's alright. Do you really think I can just go to sleep when she's like this?" he asked, indicating Ginny's writhing figure, obviously in a great deal of discomfort.

"I never knew you cared."

"I don't, I just wouldn't value myself a very good protector if I let my charge die," Said Draco, taking a seat on the edge of the bed beside Harry, reluctantly letting him take over the making of the remedy. Harry said nothing, but knew that what Draco had said hadn't been strictly true. The way Draco had insisted on being the only person to take care of Ginny, and the way he had been up with her all night without a thought for himself, bespoke of more than mere professionalism.

The events of the day had thrown up some serious questions and Harry could sense that the group dynamic was changing. He had saved both Blaise and Draco's lives and he had seen Draco save Ginny. It was obvious to anyone that things were changing. He glanced across at Draco who was moving his neck back and forth to ease the tension that had collected there. His brow was furrowed with worry and unrest, and though Harry knew he would deny it to his last breath, he was finding it difficult to see Ginny like this.

"Here, what do we do with this now?" Harry asked, handing the remedy back to Draco.

"Try and force her to take it. You try and keep her still, I'll give it to her." Draco replied, moving round to Ginny as Harry held her shoulders down. He watched as Draco carefully administered the remedy, showing more gentleness than Harry would ever have believed possible from him, then he set the bowl down and placed his hand on Ginny's forehead, gazing down with a frown at the small form below him.

"Why don't you just admit you're worried?" Harry asked.

"Because I'm not. And since when do I confess my innermost feelings to you?"

"Since when do you confess them to anybody?" Harry returned. "It's ok to be concerned, we all are. You think you can hide it, but you can't, I can see right through that act of yours."

"Oh really?" asked Draco, getting defensive. "And what makes you such an expert all of a sudden?"

"I have eyes, Malfoy." He replied simply. "I've seen the way you look at her, it's more than just a job, I know it is and deep down, you do too."

"Oh go and analyse someone else Potter, you're wasting your time on me. I was given the task of protecting Ginny and that is exactly what I intend to do. Whatever might pass between us is only the result of my role, no more, no less."

"Then why do you keep referring to her as 'Ginny'? Face it, things are changing, and there's nothing you can do to stop them, no matter how much breath you might waste trying to deny it."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Cithara: Well that's your lot for now folks, hope you liked.

Ginny: Thanks a bunch! I'm stuck there with some sort of fever in pain and discomfort! You really love to put me through it don't you!

Draco: Chill woman, you're only happy when you're moaning.

Ginny: Well we know who I get _that_ from don't we?

Draco: Moan? Me? I don't think so, I'm the picture of silent elegance.

Cithara::mumbling from the corner: If only.

Ginny: You are seriously delusional.

Draco: Yeah, yeah, whatever you say. You know it's true.

Cithara: Right that is enough! Draco, you go over to that corner, Ginny, you go to that one! Now I don't wan to hear a peep out of you for the next hour or I swear to all that is holy I will kill you both off in the next chapter::Ginny and Draco run in fear: That's better, now, if you want to be a Good Samaritan and help a poor lost soul, you can start here by reviewing and making my day that much brighter!


	9. Healing

**AN:** Hello my lovely readers! Yey, still regular on the updates, hopefully this will continue to be, even though I'm now running out of chapters – I'd better get writing some more soon! I'm on the lookout again for another BETA, so if anyone would like to oblige, drop me an email or say so in the review that I know you're going to leave! I'm getting a little sad because I've hardly had any feedback for my new fic 'BitterSweet Pain' and it's making me think I'm a bad writer, it might make me so upset that I might stop writing this fic…unless I get some nice reviews! Blackmail's such an ugly word! Only joking my friends, but if you do have some free time, stop by and give it a look!

**Review Responses:**

**wingedcinner:** Isn't he though? Of course he doesn't even know he's in denial yet! When will the silly boy learn!

**Pip08:** Actually Ron won't be getting kidnapped and you'll see in the chappie why he won't feel so left out! (And no, I'm not implying a threesome!)

**trina:** I actually hadn't thought to include any more information on Connor, but I might give it some thought!

**Alexandria J. Malfoy:** As requested, the next chapter! Thanks for the compliments!

**Chris's-grl-I-wish:** You do make me laugh! Well here it is, I hope I haven't kept you too long!

**mell8: **Glad you like the plot and I am trying to keep the pace reasonable, but if you have any suggestions on how I can improve, please let me know!

**PP Ruffie:** Aw so glad you enjoyed! I was quite pleased for Blaise and Harry too!

**seeker17:** Your comments were so lovely, thank you! There will be sweet yet angsty times ahead for our dynamic duo!

**random person: **In response to your plea, here it is!

**Karaniya –broken:** I think I've met your request, hope you like!

**ice princess grl: **Be prepared for some straight talking in the upcoming chapters because Ginny is getting fed up with the sexy Slytherin! Our Draco's a complex soul bless him!

**Eva Angel:** I'm sorry, I would have mentioned you, but you didn't review chapter 7! If you want to make it up to me, you could r&r by new fic BitterSweet Pain! Glad you like the last chappie, bless Harry and Blaise, they are rather cute, if I say so myself!

Enjoy…

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"How is she?" asked Blaise as Harry returned to their room.

"Not good. Is Ron back?"

"He's in the shower. Is there anything you can do for her?" she asked as Harry joined her on the bed. **(AN: Hee hee!)**

"I don't know, Malfoy's been up with her all night, trying various antidotes, but none of them seem to be taking any effect. I don't know what else we can do. He says he going to try and figure out what sort of a curse it is, he has a few books with him that might be able to help; if we know the cause perhaps we can identify a solution. At the moment things are looking rather bleak," Said Harry, his concern for someone he cared so much about beginning to overtake him. The reality of the situation was only just beginning to manifest itself in his mind.

"Draco knows what he's doing, he's good with this sort of thing, she's in good hands," Said Blaise, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I hope so," He returned quietly, reaching up and taking her hand, bringing it to his lips.

"Well what have we here?" asked Ron, emerging from the bathroom, a surprised but also slightly amused look on his face.

"Ron….."

"About bloody time," he broke in, much to the extreme surprise of both Harry and Blaise. "Well you two have been pretending for nearly two weeks there's nothing going on between you and it's obvious to anyone you just needed a good shove in the right direction," He finished with a grin.

"That's why you went to the pub?" asked Harry.

"Partly. You can thank me later," He said, throwing his towel at Harry. "Though if I wasn't so loved up Hermione I wouldn't have lent a helping hand!" he added with a grin.

"You're more perceptive than I would have ever given you credit for Weasley," Said Blaise with a raised eyebrow.

All three turned to look at the door as Draco slowly and quietly stood in the doorway, his expression serious and weary. "I think you should come," He said, his eyes meeting all three pairs. "She's getting worse."

They said nothing, but all followed him to Ginny's room, a wave of extreme worry sweeping over them all. Harry shot a look at Draco who was looking thoroughly exhausted, but whose jaw was clenched either determinedly or anxiously, which, Harry could not make out. They entered the room and gathered at the foot of Ginny's bed, Draco going to sit by her side and taking her hand. Ron frowned at the action, but said nothing.

"I think I've discovered what the curse was, it's rarely used nowadays, but basically it renders the recipient entirely susceptible to illness and makes them incredibly weak. Their capacity to fight off sickness is effectively non-existent, if it is not treated, they will certainly die of it," He finished almost inaudibly. "But I'm not going to let that happen," he said, cutting off Ron and Harry's immediate protestations. "I've found a cure. It's a potion, one that is hardly used these days, but I think it will be effective, I _hope _it will be effective. It involves using a pureblood wizard's blood."

"Well use mine," Said Ron, joining Draco by his sister's side. Harry had never seen him look so worried, not since he had found that Ginny had been the one Voldemort had taken into the Chamber of Secrets.

"No, I'm going to use mine," Said Draco indomitably.

"But I'm her brother."

"Exactly, your blood's too near in composition to hers, it won't work. We're using mine, end of discussion," Said Draco, bringing out a bowl that already had a range of herbs and strange smelling articles in it.

"Are you sure about this?" asked Harry.

"Of course I'm sure, she needs helping and this is the only way to do it."

Draco poised his wrist over the bowl and carefully pierced a small vein, allowing the smallest of winces to escape him as he watched his blood spill out over his skin, then slowly trickle into the bowl. There was a hiss as it mingled with the other ingredients and a strange opal hue was emitted. He allowed several drops to seep into the bowl then wiped away the blood, starting to swirl the contents together. As the others watched, he cautiously tipped the contents into Ginny's mouth, taking care she swallowed it. "Come on Gin," He whispered so only he could hear. "Don't give up on me now," He brushed his fingers over her face, having to stop himself from grimacing at the pale, almost lifeless colour of her skin.

"How long does it take to work?" Harry asked, his voice cutting through the silence like a knife.

"I don't know, it could take hours, it could take days. All we can do is wait," Draco replied, not taking his eyes off Ginny.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Ginny was in a world between sleep and awake. She was virtually unaware of anything that was going on around her, she didn't even know where she was. Her mind was practically empty and all she could see was a strange white mist. She wanted to stay in this half-world, it felt safe, uncomplicated, but something was preventing her from remaining.

It was a voice, a soft, coaxing voice. It kept telling her to come back, but she wasn't sure where she was supposed to come back to. She couldn't ignore it, no matter how much she wanted to, it seemed to be constantly there, pleading with her not to stay in this place, where things didn't need to make sense, they didn't need to be explained, they just were. But something wasn't right, something told her that she didn't belong there, there was somewhere else she needed to be.

The voice came again, something about it was familiar, almost comforting. It kept whispering, like it was right next to her, beckoning her to join it. She couldn't stay where she was, she knew that, it wasn't her world, but it was hard to tear herself from it. She realised it was fading, the mist was dissipating and she was starting to feel things again, her mind was becoming clear. Suddenly she was snapped back to her body and she took in a deep breath as if she had been revived. She slowly opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was a blonde head on the bed next to her. On closer inspection she realised it was Draco, he had fallen asleep, his head resting on the bed.

"Draco?" she whispered croakily.

He stirred and gradually pushed himself up, not yet realising he had been woken by Ginny's voice. He looked over at her and upon realising she was awake, had to quickly steel himself or he would have revealed exactly what he felt on seeing she was alright. "You're awake," He said softly.

"Sharp as ever," She returned with a smile, hoisting herself up into sitting position. "What happened?"

"You were hit with a curse, you've been unconscious most of the night," He replied, taking a seat on the edge of the bed, placing his hand over her forehead, then on her cheek. "I don't think you're feverish anymore," He said, his hand lingering for a moment. "We managed to find a cure, I think you'll be ok."

"Have you been up all night?" she asked, finding that she hoped the answer was yes, wanting to know whether or not he had been concerned for her.

"Mostly," He uncharacteristically confessed. "The hours after administering the potion were the most crucial, you needed to be kept under observation," He said as if speaking to a patient. "I'll go and tell the others you're ok, they've been worried."

"And what about you?" she asked as he headed for the door.

"Well I wouldn't consider myself much of a protector if I'd have let you die," He said before leaving.

She allowed herself a small sigh. Upon waking, something had gripped her when she saw him asleep by her side, having obviously fallen asleep whilst watching over her. Knowing he'd been there and knowing his had possibly been the voice she had heard had given her great comfort and made her think that he felt something for her; she wasn't sure what that something was, but it was better than the cold indifference he usually showed.

The others came and expressed their great relief at seeing Ginny was well and effectively unharmed by the curse. It was decided that another day should be taken for Ginny to recuperate, but that morning Ron and Blaise would go to buy supplies for the rest of their journey as they would be the least conspicuous and the people Voldemort would be least likely to be looking for. Harry and decided to linger a little while with Ginny while Draco went down to get some breakfast.

"You're sure you're feeling alright?" he asked.

"Apart from being incredibly groggy, I'll be fine."

"You had us all pretty scared last night you know," He said with a smile.

"I'm sure not quite all of you," She replied, looking down at her hands.

"You'd better believe it," Said Harry, knowing exactly to whom she was referring. "He stayed up the whole night with you, he refused to get any sleep. While we all stole a few minutes here and there, he spent all his time looking through books to figure out what the curse was and then how he could cure it. He used his own blood Ginny; the potion required a pureblood wizard's blood and he insisted on using his own. He saved your life. No matter how much he refuses to show it, or even admit it to himself, he was worried. No matter how much he tries to deny it, he cares about you," Harry finished, hardly believing he was saying all this to Ginny.

"I don't see it somehow," Ginny returned quietly, slightly disturbed that she _wanted _to see it, that she wanted him to care about her.

"Of course you don't, he does a bloody good job of hiding it, that's why. He's so good he's almost got himself fooled; almost, but not quite. Trust me Ginny, if you'd have seen him last night, you wouldn't doubt that he feels something for you. Let's face it, who that knows you couldn't help feeling something for you?" he finished with and affectionate smile for the girl he come to regard almost as his own sister. "Give it time, he can't pretend forever."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Draco sat in the dining room of the hotel, stabbing his breakfast aggressively with his fork. He didn't know what to do with himself, but he couldn't let the others see him like this, especially not Ginny. When she had said his name, when he had woken from a rather disturbing dream to find her eyes open, looking at him, at had taken every ounce of strength he possessed to stop himself from reaching out and encircling her in his arms.

The immense relief he had felt on seeing her had been almost overwhelming, nearly uncontrollable. But he _had_ controlled it, after all that was what he was best at; controlling what he felt and not letting others see what was going on his mind and heart. She was well again, and although he tried to tell himself it was only because of his job he felt relief, some part of him insisted he was lying, a part that he didn't tap into too often.

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

When Harry returned to his room, he found that Ron and Blaise were back from their shopping expedition and that Ron had gone down to the dining room so see if he could coax a late breakfast out of someone.

"No trouble?" Harry asked Blaise on his return.

"None, I don't think they would have managed to track us down this soon, we should be safe for at least another day. How's Ginny?"

"Better, thank Merlin, Draco's potion seems to have done the trick."

"Do my ears deceive me, or did you just call him 'Draco'?" Blaise asked, a small smile playing about her lips.

"Well, I think it's time to give up childish animosities, especially after what he's done for Ginny. There's something I just don't understand though," he said, taking a seat on the edge of the bed, Blaise sitting next to him. "Why can't he just admit how he feels about her? And don't try to tell me he doesn't, I've seen how he is around her, how he was last night, you can't deny something that's right before your eyes."

"I'm not going to attempt to deny it."

"Then why does he keep pretending he doesn't feel something for her? Why does he keep pushing her away?" Harry asked, bewildered.

"Don't you see?" replied Blaise. "He's trying to push her away because he's afraid of hurting her."

"Why would he possibly hurt her?"

"Why wouldn't he? He's Draco Malfoy, son of one of the most prominent Deatheaters in Voldemort's inner circle. It's been alright for you, you've always known you've been on the side of good, he's switched half way through after realising everything he'd ever known had been a lie, after realising his father, his idol was not the man he thought, but was a cruel, depraved monster. He's trying to figure out who the hell he is; how can he ask her to trust him when he can't even trust himself? He has to keep her at a distance, he's never loved anyone before and no one's ever really loved him and believe it or not, he's terrified of that and he can't bear the thought of causing pain to the one person who might actually feel something for him."

"And all the time I had him down as a heartless, arrogant git. I didn't think he was capable of considering another person's feelings," Harry admitted quietly.

"That's what he has to put out there, he can't be hurt again like his father hurt him, so he's put up so many walls, so many barriers just to survive. If Ginny can break those down, she deserves a medal; he's spent years raising them and he won't let them down easily. Sad thing is, while it ensures he won't be hurt, it also ensures he won't be loved. But don't think he doesn't feel, don't think he doesn't care, because he does, he just won't let himself show it, he won't let others see; that to him shows considerable weakness. Pride, Harry can be a terrible thing, especially when it's been rooted as deeply as it has been in him; Lucius Malfoy has a lot to answer for," She finished, her expression hardening. "I don't know the ins and outs of what made Draco switch sides, you'd have to ask him that yourself, but I know his world was torn apart, everything he ever knew was snatched away from him and he had to rebuild himself. He's a good person, he's just……..struggling."

"He's lucky to have you as a friend," Harry told her with a smile, leaning down to kiss her, enjoying the familiarity her touch brought.

"Well, I'm just good at deciphering people."

"Oh?"

"Oh yes," She said with a smile, something she was doing far more frequently these days.

"So you can decipher me?"

"Well I think I need a bit more in-depth research," She said suggestively, pulling him down by his shirt into another kiss. She was similar in many ways to Draco, but unlike him, she was prepared to let down the walls, prepared to let someone else in, and she was rather glad that person was Harry. "Mm, more research is most definitely needed," She whispered as they broke off.

"I have no objections to that."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Harry: At last, I get some action!

Cithara: Excuse me, I'm the one who talks first!

Harry: Oh get over it honey.

Cithara: You'll be out of a job if you carry on like this.

Harry: Like I'm scared.

Cithara: You should be!

Draco: Ok, this is not fair, Potter gets action and I don't! There is something seriously wrong with this picture!

Harry: Yeah, you're in it.

Draco: Watch it Potter, I'm in no mood.

Cithara: in the background massaging her temples why do I continue to put myself through this?

Ginny: So I almost died? That's really fair!

Blaise: Hey I have to get it on with Potter, how do you think I feel?

Cithara: still in background I must be mad.

Harry: Hey, you didn't seem to mind earlier.

Blaise: I'm a good actress honey!

Cithara: Right that's it! I'm off, I'm going to see if I can find myself a nice room at the loony bin! Have a nice life! Oh and if you lovely readers would review, that might just pull me back from the brink of insanity.


	10. One step forward, two steps back

**AN:** Hello again my lovely readers, wow I'm so pleased with myself, I'm managing to keep up with the regular updates! Hopefully this will continue, even though I'm having a slight case of writer's block at the mo! But hopefully with summer holidays on the horizon I'll be able to concentrate more fully on my fics without feeling guilty because I should be studying! Anyways, I'm also on the look out for a BETA again as mine has become unavailable, so if anyone if interested in the post, please let me know in the review that I _know_ you're going to leave, or email me.

**Review responses (you guys really all rock!):**

**Alexandria J. Malfoy: **Lol, Draco is a sweet guy deep down…really deep down! Glad you liked.

**wingedcinner: **I know, I know, G/D a little thin on the ground, but I've had many and varied responses to the pace so I think I've sort of struck a balance! We'll be hearing more from Blaise about our blond friend in the not-too-distant future as well!

**Akalea:** Glad you like, hope you enjoy this chapter.

**Eva Angel:** accepts roses gratefully You are of course forgiven, and no worries about reading the other story if it's not your think ;-) Hope you like this chapter.

**A. Nutter:** Liking the name, I can relate! Thank you for your lovely comments, I was very flattered, especially with the reference to PvsM because I think that is one of the most amazing fics ever! Hope you keep reading!

**Riality:** I couldn't keep you waiting too long! Thanks so much for your comments, they were really encouraging and I really appreciate them.

**Pip08:** Lol, I came back in time to update this chapter! Glad you're enjoying, oh and thanks for putting this fic in your C2 community!

**Person:** As requested, I have continued, hope I didn't keep you waiting too long!

Hope you all enjoy…..

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Ginny had decided she couldn't spend the whole day in bed, it would only make her feel worse. So she spent a good long time in the shower, feeling the life return to her as the wonderfully hot water cascaded over her body. It was amazing how being clean could make you feel that much better.

"Oh, hi," She said as she emerged from the bathroom, her hair dripping wet, to find Draco had returned.

"Feeling better?" he asked.

"Much," She replied, towelling dry her hair. "I wanted to talk to you actually," She said, considering her words carefully. "About last night."

"What about it?" he asked, looking out of the window, he wasn't sure he trusted himself to look at her just yet.

"Harry told me what you did, I just wanted to say thank you," She said quietly, willing him to turn around and look at her; she wanted to see his face, to try and read his expression.

"You're welcome," He said steadily, he was going to kill Potter when he next saw him, why couldn't he just keep his mouth shut?

"Draco look at me," She said firmly, she was too tired to play games, and she was determined to get some straight answers out of him, even if it took her all day to do it. She'd had enough of trying to figure him out, enough of running round in circles and enough of being pulled in every direction. He actually turned around, he actually looked her directly in the eye, but even so, she couldn't tell what he was thinking, what was going through his mind at that moment. He was, as always, unfathomable.

"What is it you want me to say exactly?"

"I want you to tell me the truth for once, I want all these stupid games to stop," She said with a desperate sigh.

"You don't know what you're getting yourself into," He said, almost dismissively.

"Don't you dare, don't you dare talk to me as if I was six years old! I have my own mind, I make my own decisions, I don't need you to tell me what I should do or what I should feel."

"And what _do _you feel Ginny?" he said, moving towards her, his eyes flashing. "I've told you once before, you can't trust me."

"And I've told you, it's up to me who I trust. You think you can just tell me what to do, well I've got news for you – you can't! You might be able to frighten nearly every student at Hogwarts, intimidate everyone you come across, but let me tell you something, you don't frighten me," She said, feeling her temper rise.

"Oh really? Well maybe you _should _be frightened." He said and her eyes went to his left arm as she saw he was rolling up his sleeve. She took a deep breath as she saw what she already knew he was going to show her – the Dark Mark. It had been burned into his skin and looked ugly and painful, a menacing blemish on his otherwise perfect skin. He watched as her eyes took in the sight, and he had to admit he admired the way she was able to mask whatever it was she was feeling. Then she did the unthinkable – she leant forward and kissed it. He had absolutely no response for this peculiar reaction.

"You think I care?" she asked, her voice steady and controlled as she looked up at him, her eyes shining, determined. "It's a mark Draco, one that I know you didn't want, but it's just a mark. This isn't all you are, this doesn't make you a bad person."

"Hardly makes me a good one either does it?" he asked bitterly.

"I know you, I've seen who you really are Draco, I know you keep trying to shut me out and I wish to God I knew why, but you're not succeeding. If you think I'm just going to back down that easily you really don't know me very well," She said fiercely.

"Whereas you're the expert on me?"

"I know more than you think I do," She returned quickly. "I know you're a confused, intelligent, caring young man living in the shadow of his father, trying to figure out what the hell is going on his life, pushing everyone away who dares to get close. Well you're not pushing me away Draco Malfoy, even by showing me that," She said, indicating the Mark.

"I have to get out of here," He said heading for the door.

"I'm not just going to let you walk away from this," She said, slipping herself between him and the door.

"Ginny please, just move away from the door," He said, almost wearily.

"No," she said stubbornly, looking him straight in the eye.

"What do you want from me?"

"I just want to know how you feel, I want to know what's going on in that head of yours," She said, watching as he moved resignedly over to the bed.

"Trust me, you don't. Look Ginny I'm no good, I would have thought this was proof enough," He said gesturing to his scared arm. "I'm all the things you thought I was and worse, don't get yourself involved."

Ginny let out a small sigh of exasperation. She could quite willingly have throttled him at that point, instead she took a seat beside him on the bed, staring at the wall in front of her as it would give her some advice on what to say. "You can lie to yourself as much as you want, you can fool nearly everyone around you, but you can't fool me. I've seen who you really are, I've seen the man that you try so hard to hide and I know he isn't anywhere near the person I thought he was. Draco I know you didn't want that Mark, I know you wanted no part of it or else why would you be protecting me from Voldemort?"

"Well someone has to don't they?" he said, a silence descending. He was trying so hard to think of what he could say to her, but the words just seemed to fail him. He'd never been very good at expressing what was inside. "I was fifteen," He said quietly, deciding the best he could do was to tell her how it happened. "I was confused, troubled, things were starting to make less and less sense, but I decided to be initiated; I thought that maybe after I was things would fall into place. Stupid idea, things only began to get worse. Ever since I was a boy I've been told about this great wizard, one that was coming to cleanse our world and solve all the problems we had, doesn't that sound like an acceptable proposition to you? It was only as I grew older that I began to realise what all this 'cleansing' would entail. One night when I couldn't sleep, I passed my father's study and I saw what can only be described as a ritual. There was a girl, a young girl no more than sixteen, she'd been beaten, raped and she was standing in the middle of a circle. A man advanced towards her with a sword and plunged it into her heart. That man was my father."

"Oh Draco," She said softly.

"I sought refuge at Hogwarts, I knew he wouldn't dare follow me there, he fears Dumbledore too much. I locked myself away for months, spent my nights trying to gouge the Mark from my flesh, but all I succeeded in doing was to mess up the design a little," He said, a bitter smile on his lips. "It was done when I was young and naïve and I wish with all my heart I'd known then what I do now, but it was done and there's nothing I can do to change that."

"Exactly!" she said almost desperately. "You can't change it, it's in the past, so why are you still torturing yourself over it? It doesn't make a difference to me. You're still you."

He looked at the girl before him, only she wasn't a girl anymore, she was so much more. She was strong, determined and wilful, not so very different from himself. He went against all the advice his mind was screaming at him and he kissed her, long and hard, the contact satisfying only a fraction of the desire he'd felt for her for some time. He knew he shouldn't, but as his hands roved over her body and his lips made rough contact with her own, he found he didn't care much about doing the right thing. Everything he had been feeling over the past few weeks was manifesting itself in the kiss, everything he had been trying desperately to control. It was so complicated, too complicated; this couldn't happen.

"I can't do this," He said, breaking away. "Merlin knows I…." He had to stop himself, he was in serious danger of letting the situation get out hand and of letting her know exactly what was racing through his mind at that point. "I'm sorry Ginny, I have to go," He said, getting up and leaving, taking all his energy not to look back at her.

"Great, that's just great."

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"Oh Ginny," Sighed Tom as he approached her through the darkness of the dungeon. "Things are beginning to unravel now aren't they?"

"What do you mean?" she whispered feebly.

"I'm getting closer, I'm going to find you Ginny. You keep escaping but soon I'll have you, soon you'll be mine."

"I wouldn't bet on that," She replied, the first time ever she'd ever defied him.

"My my, we are getting above ourselves aren't we? I blame him for that, he's been an incredibly bad influence on you. You know he's meant to serve me? Who does he think he is that he can just deny me? He'll be punished, but not yet, now is not his time is it precious? It's yours," He said, a long finger trailing down her cheek. She had to stop herself from shuddering, she was damned if she was going to let him see she was frightened.

"Not this time Tom, I won't let you."

"I'm curious to know how you think you'll stop me. You see I have a little trick up my sleeve, it gives me the edge as muggles say and it's going to lead me right to you."

"Oh? And what is this edge?" asked Ginny, trying to sound sceptical, but knowing that her fear played too great a role for her to sound so.

"An informant," He hissed, the sound of glee in his voice. "Someone telling me your every step, watching, waiting, my faithful servant. You're being betrayed Ginny, and you're too stupid to even realise."

"You're lying."

"I don't lie, it's a muggle thing, far beneath me, like you," He said, taking her by the neck and pushing her to the ground, kissing her roughly, bruising her lips. He tore at her clothes and she felt his hands all over her body as she shivered with disgust. "You're mine Ginny, you always have been. You belong to me."

"I belong to no one," She managed to struggle out as he pinned her to the ground, becoming rougher by the minute.

"On the contrary. And I'll have you again, soon, very soon and this," he said indicating to what he was doing. "Will soon be very real. You're the key Ginny and I intend to use you."

Ginny's eyes snapped open as she sat up in bed, the feeling of disgust and terror slowly seeping away as she realised where she was. She looked around but found that the room was empty, Draco still hadn't returned. She wanted him, she wanted him to take her in his arms and tell that everything would be ok and that there was no way Tom could hurt her. But instead she had the consolation of a cold, silent room. For the first time in ages, she cried.

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They all sat in the dining room of the hotel, trying to eat what little breakfast they could manage. Ginny had decided to tell them about last night's dream and they were all pensively quiet. Draco had returned but was saying little and he and Ginny had reverted to avoiding all eye contact and really, general avoidance of all kind. Everyone could sense the tension between them but had brains enough not to push the matter further.

"So he told you someone was watching us? Helping him find us?" asked Harry, absent-mindedly stirring his long forgotten coffee.

"That's what he said. I mean I don't know how true it is, it was just a dream," she said, shooting a look at Draco. "But they're never usually wrong."

"Then we need to be more careful than ever. We shouldn't stay here, we should keep moving," Said Harry.

"You're right, we're catching the next train to London," Said Draco, getting up, motioning for the others to do the same. "Get your stuff together and meet me down here in five minutes."

"More muggle transportation, you have got to be joking!" moaned Blaise as they made their way up the stairs.

"Oh come on, it's not a rickety old bus, but we can still have fun," said Harry with an evil grin, snaking an arm around her waist.

"Is there something you forgot to mention?" asked Ginny, stopping as she saw the contact and that Blaise didn't seem to mind a bit. "On second thoughts, I don't need to know!" she said, carrying on walking as she saw the look that passed between Blaise and Harry. At least some people were getting things sorted.

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They were just in time to catch the next train out of Reading to London, though all had in the back of their minds the worry of whether or not there was someone watching, waiting to report their every step to Voldemort. They were obviously never safe; they were being hunted, but now the knowledge that there was somebody out there, somebody who was apparently betraying them all, was incredibly unnerving.

"I can't wait to get to London, it'll be good to be in the wizarding world again," Said Blaise as she leaned against Harry's chest, gazing out of the window, her right hand laced through his.

"I'll just be glad when this whole thing is over," He said, trying to keep his mind off the feel of her warm body against his, or the smell of her hair, or how soft her hand was or…."Get it together!" he reprimanded himself, shaking himself back to his senses. Merlin she was driving him crazy, in all the right ways. She shivered with cold and moved deeper into his hold, only serving to fuel his desire. It was going to take some serious effort to push out all the thoughts that were going through his mind at that moment.

"At least we haven't had any trouble since Liverpool," Said Ron, helping to remove some but not all of Harry's thoughts.

"We can't be too careful though," Said Draco, the first he had spoken for a couple of hours. "The minute we are we might as well give ourselves up."

"Said the Voice of Doom," Said Ron, rolling his eyes.

Draco was too wrapped up in his own thoughts to bother retaliating, Ginny noticed. He had hardly spoken two words together all morning and was ignoring all the snipes and sarcasms that were thrown his way. She had no idea when he'd returned to the hotel, but she was willing to bet it hadn't been during the night or even early morning. She'd wanted him so much when she had woken from her nightmare, she'd wanted to feel the warmth of his body and the strength of his arms and she'd wanted his voice to soothe all her troubles away.

She didn't understand him, but then, he had told her once before that she wasn't meant to. There were barriers, she knew that, she wasn't stupid, but she thought that over the past couple of weeks things were beginning to change, the barriers were slowly starting to crumble. But now they seemed stronger than ever with Draco avoiding her in every way possible. She didn't know why he insisted on constantly pushing her away, or on denying that something was going on between them, but she was beginning to tire of it.

She hadn't exactly been shocked by the previous night's revelation about Draco's initiation or the events following it, but she felt so sorry for Draco and what he had been through. She couldn't imagine what it must feel like to have your whole world come crashing down around you, to find that everything you had ever believed in was a lie; it must have been devastating. She knew Draco would not welcome pity though, and she would show him none, but she wished he would let her in.

Thankfully the train journey wasn't long and they were in London by one o' clock, after which they headed straight for Diagon Alley. Blaise was right, it was good to be back in the wizarding community, but they had to keep their heads down; Harry Potter, two Weasleys, a Malfoy and a Zabini were hardly unnoticeable. Still, it was nice to be surrounded by such familiarity; such things could be comforting in times of trouble and uncertainty.

They decided to stay in an inn that was not dissimilar to the Leaky Cauldron, but was in a less high-profiled area and did not have such comings and goings as to be dangerous. The girls took one room, the boys took another, for which Ginny was rather grateful; she really wasn't in the mood for a tense atmosphere with Draco.

"Hey, you girls all settled?" asked Harry, coming in to check on them.

"Fine. It's not exactly the Ritz, but we can't ask for miracles now can we?" replied Blaise.

"I think I'm just going to see if I can cadge a meal, I'm starving," Ginny said with a wink to Harry, she sensed he wanted some 'alone-time' with the Slytherin, and who was she to deny it?

Harry stifled a grin and walked over to Blaise, placing a soft kiss on her lips. "Remind me to thank Ginny for that."

"I don't think I should be reminding you to think of other girls," She said, pulling him down for another kiss, her hands moving from his neck to his hair, a small moan escaping her lips as he pulled her closer to him, pressing their bodies as close as possible. Her heart sped up as things became more heated between them and she felt herself being pressed up against the wall, her breathing heavy. She had come to feel a passion for him that bordered on distraction and the only thought in her mind was how much she wanted him. "Are we really going to do this?" she asked as she felt his hands go to her clothing.

"Don't you……"

"Do you really need to ask?" she whispered, her hand sliding to the lock on the door. Nothing was going to spoil this. She pulled him on to the bed, her top now the other side of the room and his shirt half off, the contact of pure skin entirely welcome. His lips went from hers to her neck, his hands pinning her own against the bed. His need for her increased as the passion did, he was lost in it, and he didn't want to be found.

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"I'm sure I had a bra." Said Blaise, as she searched the bedroom, wrapped in the bed sheets. "You didn't throw it out the window did you?" she asked, looking back at Harry who was pulling his trousers on.

"Why bother getting dressed at all?" he asked with a grin.

"Very helpful. Listen," she said, her tone becoming more serious. "There's something I think I should tell you."

"Sounds important."

"It is, well kind of. Remember how you asked me what was between Draco and me and I told you that it was something in my past, something that I don't really of think of these days?" Harry nodded. "Well I try not to think of it anyway, but it isn't really the sort of thing you can just forget easily. I'm only telling you this because I don't want to keep anything from you, and it's something I think you should know," She paused for a moment, considering her words carefully. "When I was sixteen," she said slowly. "I was used as part of a Death Eater ritual; I was beaten and raped then locked in the cellar, I thought I was going to die. I'd just about given up all hope when I saw the door open and Draco appeared. He saved me, took me away to Hogwarts and spent weeks taking care of me, helping me get through it. If it hadn't been for him I wouldn't be here now. He's a good person, and I owe him my life."

"I had no idea," Harry said quietly. "God I wish I knew what to say."

"It's ok, I wasn't expecting a speech worthy of Shakespeare or anything, I just wanted you to know. It took a while to come to terms with everything that had happened, it wasn't easy but I took it a day at a time and it slowly got better. I came through it and it's behind me now."

"I'm so sorry you had to go through it," He said, sliding his arms gently round her shoulders.

"Harry, I'm not made of glass, I won't break if you touch me," She said with a smile. "As I think we've established." She said, indicating the dishevelled bed.

"I'm glad you told me."

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Blaise and Harry went in search of the others and found them in the public area of the inn, having managed to persuade the landlady to provide them with some food. Ginny gave them an amused smile, but thankfully said nothing as they slid in to the wooden booth, picking at the food.

Ginny had gone wandering round the inn for a little while before visiting her brother and Draco, she couldn't avoid him forever, and one of them had to behave like an adult. Not much conversation passed between the two of them, most of it took place between her and her brother, for whose presence she was very grateful; she couldn't have coped if she had been left on her own with Draco.

"Ok, I know this is going to sound like a crazy idea with everything that's going on; but I say we go out tonight, have some fun," Suggested Blaise.

"You're right," said Draco. "That does sound like a crazy idea."

"I think we should," Said Ginny, partly because she really did think they should, and partly in defiance of Draco. "There's that wizarding nightclub Temptations not far from here. It would do us good to get out and just try and forget everything that's going on at the moment. We don't have to stay out too late," she said, seeing the look on Draco's face. "Just long enough to relieve some of the tension," She said, stressing the word pointedly.

In view of the fact that the others agreed, there was little Draco could do to convince them otherwise. Deciding to spend the rest of the afternoon, what little there was of it, resting, they made the move back to their room, but Harry caught Draco before they got back.

"What is it now Potter?"

"Blaise told me, about everything, about what you did for her; and I just wanted to thank you," He said quietly.

"Oh, right," Draco replied, rather unsure of what to say at this sudden revelation. "Listen Potter I want you to know that if you ever do anything to hurt that girl in any way, I will cause you severe bodily harm, understood?"

Harry merely smiled and nodded, pushing past Draco up the stairs to their room. Draco watched him go and hoped he wouldn't have to carry out his threat. "You told him?" he asked as Blaise came up to him.

"I didn't want it to be between us. Plus I wanted him to see the person you really are, and I think I've successfully achieved that."

"You sure he's right for you?"

"Oh I'm sure." She said with a smile, following Harry up the stairs, but not before turning round and saying. "Oh and by the way, he's one hell of a shag."

"I really did not need to know that."

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Cithara: Hee hee! I just had to make them go for it!

Harry: I'm not complaining!

Blaise: I bet you aren't!

Draco: This is bloody ridiculous! When do _I_ get a look in!

Ginny: Hold your horses, it doesn't do to rush these things you know.

Draco: Well I really wouldn't mind, rush things all you like!

Ginny: Some people really need to learn how to control their hormones.

Cithara: Yeah all of you! Now please, if you could just shut up for a moment, just a moment, I could talk to the readers. Now lovely people, I'm sure you already know what I'm going to say, but I'll say it anyway…please review! It really does make my day.


	11. Familiar Faces

**AN:** Hey all, I'm sorry to say that the updates might become slightly less frequent in the upcoming weeks because I'm starting full-time job next week to earn money over the summer for Uni, but it _is_ full-time and will be taking up a lot of my time, though I will try to continue work on this fic, but if the updates become a bit erratic, that's the reason why. Still on the lookout for a BETA, so if anyone wishes to oblige, please let me know!

**Review responses:**

**wingedcinner: **Yeah I know what you mean, but it just sort of felt like the right time for Blaise to let Harry know about her past. Glad you liked the rest though.

**AimeeK: **Yeah, lol, they've all been through it haven't they? Can't really tell you whether or not they come through it victorious, all I can say is that they'll have a lot to get through!

**Riality: **Your review made me laugh! Poor Harry, who _do _you picture him screwing then!

**Person:** I have! I have!

**Pip08:** Your wait is over, you're about to find out exactly what happens in the club! I personally liked the part where Ginny kisses the Mark too, and I think Draco was rather surprised!

**riah riddle:** Hey girl! Where have you been! I missed you! Lol, Tom really _is_ giving Ginny a hard time, it's not going to get any better either! Nice to have you back!

**Alexandria J. Malfoy:** Hee hee, Draco's making things difficult, but hopefully this will explain why!

**Mizgeorgiapeach:** Aw, thank you so much! I'm so glad you like it so much! Hope you keep reading!

**PP Ruffie:** Lol, please continue to tell me how much you love it! Hmm, I can't really answer your question just yet, but it will be answered in due time! Keep reading!

**Eva Angel:** Yeh the ending makes me laugh too! 'Fraid I can't tell you who the traitor is at this point, you'll just have to keep reading!

**Luksich:** I'm glad you heart this story! All questions will eventually be answered when I tie up the many plotholes to this story! Ginny and the others may well be caught, but not by whom you might think!

Thanks everyone so much for all your encouragement and support! Hope you like this one, let me know!

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Getting dressed up and ready for the night ahead made Ginny feel much better and she even managed to block out everything that was going on in her mind. She was ready to push it all aside, for one night at least; she deserved that much. She and Blaise helped each other, enjoying the girlishness of the situation and being able to occupy their minds with just make-up and clothing, something neither got to do too often.

They were both looking forward to dancing the night away and trying to forget the threat that had been hanging over their heads constantly for the past few days. It had to be said; they both looked incredible, as all three boys would have attested to as they saw the girls walk down the stairs, each having to 'put their eyes back in', as Blaise instructed them.

The club was about a five minute walk from the inn and was already packed by the time they arrived, but that suited their situation; the more people that were present, the less chance there was of someone seeing them who shouldn't. It resembled a muggle club in many ways in that there was a bar in one corner and a huge dance floor in the middle of the room, with various podiums and poles dotted here and there, but the fact that various pieces of furniture and random objects were obviously enchanted betrayed that it wasn't.

They all moved through the throng of dancing, laughing people towards the bar and ordered their drinks, the boys insisting they paid for the girls'. Ginny had said little to Draco, apart from saying a quick thank you when he had held the door for her, hardly what she was after. But she had made up her mind that tonight was not going to be about him; it was about her and the fun she was going to have.

"Well I don't know about anyone else, but I didn't come here to stand around watching everyone else, who wants to dance?" she asked.

"Sounds good to me," Said Blaise, following her onto the dance floor, casting a look behind at Harry.

"If you two would excuse me," He said with a grin, moving swiftly after the raven-haired girl, slipping an arm around her waist.

"Well, a Slytherin and a Gryffindor, who would have thought it?" said Ron, turning back to Draco, whose eyes were still on Ginny as she laughed at something Blaise had said. Seeing Draco was not readily willing to engage in conversation wasn't enough to put Ron off however; he had a point to make, and by Merlin's beard, he was going to make it. "Don't you find it strange that a Slytherin and Gryffindor have got together?" he asked.

"I really couldn't care less," Draco replied, downing his vodka. **(AN: Mmmm vodka)**

"You're both very good at pretending," He said, looking in the direction of his sister. "Personally I don't know why you bother, it seems like a huge waste of time to me."

"I don't have the slightest clue what it is you're babbling on about, but I really wish you'd stop."

"Ok, I was going to try the soft, subtle approach, but I can see that really isn't going to work with you; when are you and my sister going to stop arsing around and just admit that there's something going on between you?"

"Once again Weasley, I don't have the slightest clue what you're talking about," Said Draco, trying to retain his composure and try not to express great surprise that Ginny's brother was rather astute.

"Right, that's why you're glaring daggers at the bloke that Ginny's dancing with. Mind you, the _way_ she's dancing, I'm going to be glaring daggers pretty soon. Remember, avoiding the issue doesn't mean the issue doesn't exist," He said, walking to the end of the bar, ordering another drink.

Draco shook his head in annoyance; Weasley had no right interfering in his private affairs, it had nothing to do with him what was going on with him and Ginny, not that anything was. He tried to move his eyes away from Ginny and the guy she was 'dancing' with, although dancing didn't even begin to cover it, but he found that he kept being drawn back to them. He was aware he was gritting his teeth and clenching his fists, but he was determined he would stay his side of the room; he wasn't about to make a fool of himself.

Ginny glanced over in Draco's direction and couldn't help feeling pleased at the look on his face and the fact that it was aimed in her direction. The guy she was dancing with wasn't too bad, he didn't compare to Draco in looks, but he seemed interested, and at that point, that was all she wanted, after all, she was only using him to annoy Draco.

His hands were on her hips, though they had taken to roving her body now and then, and she could feel his breath on her neck. She moved her hips in time to the rhythm of the music, her hands on his shoulders then on his chest, hoping Draco was still watching. She was still so frustrated with him, with the whole situation and her feelings were so confused and muddled by it all. She was still scared, she would have been crazy not to have been, but that was just one of the many things she was feeling and she was trying to push them all to the back of her mind so as not to send herself insane.

"Someone should go speak to her," Harry said to Blaise as they watched Ginny.

"Oh don't worry, by the look on Draco's face I'd say she won't be with him too long," She said, glancing over at the blonde Slytherin who looked as though he was trying to set the guy on fire with an intense stare, his jaw tightly clenched.

"I just don't understand them."

"I don't think they do either! But to be fair, it's not exactly an easy situation, there are complications not to mention they're both abnormally stubborn people! Maybe Ginny's not too far off the mark with what she's doing – you know, make him see what he's missing. I hope _I_ won't ever have to do that." She said, looping her arms round his neck, a smirk appearing on her face.

"I think your fears are empty, I'm not that much of an idiot," He said, his hands settling on her waist.

"Hm, that's debateable," She said with a smile which he returned before kissing her. "But I'm willing to put up with a bit of stupidity for kisses like that."

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As the night continued, so did Ginny's flirtation with the guy whose name she hadn't even bothered to ask for. She'd let him buy her several drinks and was standing with him at the bar, not really listening to what he was saying, only hoping Draco, wherever he now was, could see she didn't need him. She gave the guy another smile, encouraging him to continue, and downed her fifth shot of tequila, feeling her mind begin to go fuzzy.

"Oh that's interesting," She heard herself say, not having a clue what was apparently so interesting, but he didn't seem to notice, and carried on talking regardless. "Why don't we go and dance again?" she cut in, leading him on to the dance floor, Draco didn't need to see them immersed in conversation, after all, actions spoke louder than words.

With that thought in mind, along with various quantities of alcohol, she slid her arms around his neck and pressed herself against him, moving in time with the music. She was going to show Draco once and for all the meaning of 'show him what he's missing'; she gave the guy a suggestive smile and pulled him down to kiss her. As their lips made contact, she couldn't help but think of how it in no way compared to Draco's kisses, how this guy's hair wasn't anywhere as near as soft and how static the situation felt. She felt him deepen the kiss and felt his hands move from her waist just that little bit lower before she felt herself be roughly pulled away. It wasn't until she was outside in the alley by the club that she realised just whose hand was clasped around her upper arm.

"Something wrong?" she asked, looking indignantly up at a pair of grey orbs.

"Just what has got in to you?" he asked, pinning her shoulders up against the wall, trying desperately to control the torrent of emotions that were cascading through him and threatening to surface at any moment.

"Nothing – _yet_," She said, her eyes flashing with the innuendo. A small part of her couldn't help but feel triumphant that she'd made him feel like this, she'd been the one to elicit this reaction from him; he could hardly deny now that he felt at least something for her.

Draco was somewhat thrown by this and gritted his teeth more tightly to keep from saying something he knew he would later come to regret. "What do you think you're playing at?" he asked, trying to compose himself, with great difficulty. "Do you realise just how dangerous this situation is? You have one of the world's most deranged psychopaths after you and all you can do is enjoy yourself! I mean that guy could be…."

"Could be what?" she cut him off. "A guy who might possibly be interested in me? Now there's a thought!" she practically spat. "Live you've said many a time before, you're my Protector, no more, no less. It's a bit late now to pretend that you give a damn!" she said, shaking herself free from his hold and making her way back into the club. She didn't get far however, and she was soon forced to look into his grey eyes again as he pulled her back into the alleyway.

"Are you really that insensible?" he asked, still keeping a firm grasp on her wrist. "For Merlin's sake Ginny, can't you see that I give more than a damn!" he said, his voice rising. He could hear the words, he was aware of what he was saying, of what he was about to say, but somehow he just couldn't stop himself. "Don't you know what you do to me? Do you really think I don't feel something for you?" his hand slowly released the small wrist it had encased, but his eyes still held hers in an iron grip.

"Then why do you keep pushing me away?" she asked softly, not yet willing to give herself up to his honesty, or indeed even to reciprocate. She didn't want to open herself up, only to be crushed, yet again.

"What else can I do?" he asked. "By pushing you away I lessen the risk of you getting hurt," He explained quietly.

"No, by pushing me away you hurt me anyway," She whispered.

"I've told you before; I'm no good," He said, his hand gently going to her cheek. "And I'm terrified of dragging you down with me, you're better off well away from me."

"Shouldn't that be my decision?" she fiercely, moving his hand away from her. "If you cared about me at all…."

"Of course I care!" he broke in, his voice hoarse and uncontrolled as everything he had been forcing down suddenly rose to the surface with full force. "I care so much I'm willing to do anything to stop you getting hurt, even if that means sacrificing my own happiness in the process. Has it occurred you that it's my own father who's the cause of all this? That it was my father who first gave you the diary, and let that monster infect you? Do you have any idea how much it kills me to know that he did that to you? That if it wasn't for him you wouldn't have to deal with any of this, you could be having a perfectly normal life, that if it wasn't for him…"

"I wouldn't have had the chance to know who you really are, if it hadn't been for him I'd still think you were an arrogant, self-absorbed prick and I wouldn't know what I do now……about everything. You're not your father Draco and you can't take the blame for his mistakes, you can't hold all this guilt, it'll destroy you, it'll destroy everything."

A silence fell, both contemplating what the other had said and neither yet willing to admit there was just a little truth in the others' words. Ginny let a small sigh escape her as she looked up at her one-time enemy, whose eyes were now somewhat distant, as if, somehow, lodged into the wall he was staring at, he would find some answers, he would find a way of making her see what he was trying to say.

Words had never eluded Draco Malfoy, he had never been at a loss for how to express himself, but now he was struggling, really struggling. He _wasn't_ his father, he knew that, of course he knew that, but it was hard to shed the remnants of a man who had been such a major influence, who he'd almost worshipped. It was hard to step out of the shadows. He met her eyes once again; "Ginny," he began.

"No," she said quietly. "I don't think this conversation's going to go where either of us wants it to, so it's probably best not to have it."

"We can't just leave it like this," Draco protested.

"We'll only start back on the same path, and I don't feel like walking it again tonight. Let's just go back inside, the others will be starting to worry," She said, heading for the door.

"Going back to him?" Draco asked from behind, half nonchalantly, half bitterly; an odd combination.

"Why Draco? Would it bother you?" she asked, turning back to face him. "Maybe if you danced with me yourself I wouldn't need to find someone else," She said, both of them knowing that 'dancing' was merely a poor euphemism. He was about to reply to her comment when he saw the other three emerge from the club and make their way over to them.

"We were about to send out a search party," Said Ron. "Everything alright?" he asked, to which they both merely nodded, looking away from each other. "Obviously," He said, rolling his eyes. "We thought it was about time we made a move, you two ready to go?"

"Yeah, tonight's taken it out of me," Said Ginny. "I'm more than ready to go," This was partly true; one side of her wanted to remove herself from the situation and forget about the whole thing. However, the other side, the one that more frequently won, wanted to carry on the conversation, to see just what more he had to day, to see if it was anything she wanted to hear.

They were on the verge of leaving when a voice from behind stopped them. It was a voice three of the party knew well, but hadn't heard in a good while, and hadn't expected to hear for a good while more. The voice belonged to Percy Weasley. They watched him make his way through the crowds before he finally made it to them, a smile on his face.

"I can't believe it! I thought it was you, but I wasn't sure until you turned around!" he said, looking at each of them in turn. He looked much the same, only older and perhaps not as…restrained. He was still smart and neat, but he'd lost much of his old stuffiness and didn't look as thoroughly disapproving as he used to. "Merlin I haven't seen you in ages! What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Us? What about you!" said Ron. "We haven't heard from you in two years! Was a letter too much trouble! Merlin Percy, you could have let us know what was going on!"

"I'm sorry, I know I should have kept in touch, but I suppose things simply got in the way. There were certain complications, I didn't have too much time for letters," He replied.

"You didn't have time for your own family?" asked Ron with a superiority that impressed even Draco, it seemed he'd done quite a bit of growing up lately, and Draco had to admit, he much preferred a grown-up Ron to a childish, hot-tempered one.

"Look, this isn't the place to discuss it. My flat's just around the corner, why don't we go back there and we can catch up, You can stay the night if you want," He offered.

"We've got all our things back at the inn," Harry said.

"Not a problem, we pass it, you can stop and get what you need on the way."

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They all sat in Percy's living room, listening as he recounted what had been happening in his life for the past two years. It transpired that he was now quite high up in the Ministry and was quite close to becoming Deputy Minister. Draco raised an eyebrow at this as he glanced around the flat; it was impossibly clean and tidy, it looked as though it had never been lived in; everything was spotless.

He hadn't exactly been thrilled at the prospect of spending the night in a Weasley home, but had decided against opposing the idea; he wasn't ready for another argument tonight. Of all the Weasleys, he had probably disliked Percy the most. He was always so pompous and self-righteous, too full of his own importance and just one of those people in general that Draco found hard to tolerate.

"Look I really am sorry that I didn't let you all know what was happening, but there was some tension between Dad and me, so I thought it might be better to let the dust settle for a while," He said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Two years – that's a lot of dust," Said Ron; apparently he wasn't yet ready to welcome his brother with open arms, or to absolve his actions.

"Yes, I suppose it is," Percy said quietly. Ron was pleased to see he had the decency to look somewhat ashamed. "So what about you? What's been going on? This is rather a strange party you make," He said, eyeing Draco and Blaise in particular.

"School project," Said Draco, shooting glances to the others. He didn't care whether Percy was family or not, no one was to know the true reason behind their departure from Hogwarts. "We have to live in muggle London for a week, but we decided to take the night off," He said casually, not at all surprised at how easily the lies came.

"Sounds interesting."

"Not really."

"Right…well I really should be getting some sleep, I have an early start in the morning. I hope you'll be alright in here."

"We'll be fine," Ginny assured him. "Goodnight." She waited until he had left before turning to Ron and asking, "Why were you being so hard on him?"

"He can't just waltz back in to our lives after two years and expect us to just accept him back. It doesn't work like that. You don't just abandon your family, it's one of the most important things."

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Draco sat wide awake by the window, watching the night stretch out and listening to the steady breathing of the others around him. He hadn't even bothered trying to fall asleep; it was becoming more and more impossible these days, and though he was desperately trying to deny it, it might have had something to do with a certain red-headed Weasley who didn't go by the name of Ron.

She didn't see, didn't see what he desperately wanted her to and yet at the same time, hoped she wouldn't. He'd never been so confused in his whole life, and it wasn't exactly something he was enjoying. He didn't know what he could do, how he could put in to words what is was he was struggling to express. That was most probably where the root of the problem lay; he wasn't used to expressing what he felt, either because he just didn't feel it or that little voice inside him, the one that sounded far too much like his father, told him not to even think about conveying what he felt. Truth be told, he wasn't even sure he _wanted_ to convey it, someone would end up getting hurt, one way or another.

"Can't sleep either?" asked a voice behind him. He turned around and saw Harry was making his way over to the window. He shook his head in response. "What's your excuse?" Harry asked.

"Never been much of a sleeper," Draco replied with a shrug, surprised at how amicable his response had been. "You?"

"Same I suppose. I guess we all have things that haunt us," Harry said meaningfully, leaning against the wall. "Or maybe we just all have very bad cases of insomnia." Draco allowed himself the smallest of smiles as he looked across at the raven-haired boy, and it occurred to him that he hadn't fought once with him since they had 'joined forces' as it were. True they hadn't exactly been skipping down the yellow brick road arm-in-arm, but they hadn't been tearing each other limb from limb either. That was it, Draco concluded, his world was now officially upside down. "I guess things are too complicated at the moment to get much sleep," Harry continued.

"How do you mean?" Draco asked, hoping he was just talking about Voldemort.

"Well, everything, the whole situation, I mean it's even got us talking civilly!"

"That can easily be rectified Potter," Draco said, though the remark was laced with next to no acid at all.

"Well that was a half-arsed attempt if ever I've heard one!" said Harry with a laugh. "Don't you think it's time we dropped the last name thing? It's rather childish."

"And when did you decide to grow up?" Draco asked irritably, receiving a shrug in response. He was right though, the animosity between them was rather childish now, especially when you placed it against the grand scheme that was playing out. But they'd hated each other for so long, although, Draco considered, that _was_ when they were on opposing sides; now they fought the same enemy, was it really logical to continue their rivalry? Draco shifted as these thoughts made their way through his mind, and finally said, "I don't know, maybe old habits – "

"Should have died long ago," Harry cut in. "There are more important things than us going on now. We don't have time to harbour old rivalries, we have enough enemies without creating them on our own side, it's just not worth it," he finished, looking old beyond his years, which really only disguised what he truly was – a boy who had seen and experienced far too much in his eighteen years. It was in seeing this that Draco realised they actually weren't so very different after all.

"When did you start to philosophise so much?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh it's not a recent thing," said Harry with a smile, remembering an earlier conversation with Blaise about thinking too much. "Listen, I have a proposition," He said slowly, not sure what the other boy's reaction would be.

"Potter! I never knew you swung that way!" said Draco, pretending to be thrilled with a bit of gossip, receiving a smack upside the head and a glare. "Oh calm down for Merlin's sake, I thought you were supposed to have a sense of humour!" said Draco, rubbing his head and making sure his hair hadn't been messed up beyond the 'just rolled out of bed' look. "Ok, what's this proposition then?"

"We start again, right from scratch, or almost, try and forget the past six and a half years, not that I'm saying it'll be easy. I mean, you _were_ a total prick, and you're not exactly on an angel now – "

"Wow Potter, you're really selling his to me," said Draco, arching an eyebrow. "I suggest you never go into P.R."

"Do you agree or not?" asked Harry impatiently. "What have you got to lose?" he asked, and slowly extended his hand to Draco. He looked at it for a moment; what _did_ he have to lose? Was it really that easy to just obliterate six and half years; was a handshake all it took? Well, he decided as he slowly took the hand offered, it was a start.

"Things must be bad," said Draco, shaking his head as he released Harry's hand.

"You can confess your innermost feelings to me now," said Harry with a grin.

"Let's not go that far."

"Let's talk about Ginny."

"Don't push it Potter."

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End file.
